Leakage evaluation of original and compatible implant-abutment connections: In vitro study using Rhodamine B

Leakage has been addressed as a major contributing factor to inflammatory reactions at the implant-abutment connection, leading to problems such as oral malodor, inflammation, and marginal bone loss. The aim of this study was to investigate in vitro the leakage at implant-abutment interface of OsseoSpeed™ implants connected to original and compatible abutments. A total of 28 OsseoSpeed implants were divided into four groups (n = 7). Each group was connected to four different abutments according to manufacturers' recommendations: group A (TiDesign™); group B (Natea™); group C (Dual™); and group D (Implanet™) abutments. The inner volume of each implant-abutment combination was calculated and leakage was detected for each group with spectrophotometric analysis at 1 h (D0) and 48 h (D1) of incubation time using Rhodamine B. At 1 h, leakage volume was significantly lower in TiDesign and Dual than in Natea and Implanet (P < 0.001). At 48 h, however, leakage was significantly lower between TiDesign and all other systems (P < 0.005). Compatible abutments do not fit internal connection of OsseoSpeed implants perfectly, which increases the leakage of the final assembly.