Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 27, 2026
Pilot In Vitro Study to Assess Cleaning Ability and Effects of Different Decontamination Methods on Implant Surfaces
Published on: November 21, 2025
The maintenance of inserted titanium implants: in-vitro evaluation of exposed surfaces cleaned with three different
Carlo Bertoldi1, Donatella Lusuardi2, Francesca Battarra2
1Department of Surgery, Medicine, Dentistry and Morphological Sciences with Transplant Surgery, Oncology and Regenerative Medicine Relevance, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy.
Objective:
Changes to titanium implants smooth-surfaces after instrumentation were comparatively analyzed using low-vacuum scanning electron microscopy (LV-SEM) and white-light confocal (WLC) profilometry, to accurately evaluate curved surfaces.
Material And Methods:
Sixty titanium implants screwed to their abutments were randomly split into three groups for cleaning treatment with (S) stainless-steel Gracey-curettes, (T) titanium Langer-curettes, and (P) an ultrasonic-device with the probe covered with a plastic-tip. One sector of each implant was left unprocessed (U). The other sectors were cleaned for either 60 s, to simulate a single cleaning session, or 180 s to simulate a series of sessions. Surface morphology was analyzed by LV-SEM, without metal sputtering. Quantitative evaluations of the roughness of surfaces were performed using a WLC-profilometer. The Wilcoxon and the Mann-Whitney tests were used in statistical comparisons.
Results:
U-surfaces showed that thin transverse ridges and grooves, i.e. a polarized surface roughness was substantially compromised after S-instrumentation. Small surface alterations, increasing with time, were also recorded after T-·and·P-instrumentation, although to a lesser degree. The gap of the fixture-abutment connection appeared almost completely clean after T-, clotted with titanium debris after S-, and clotted with plastic debris after P-treatment. The mean roughness (Ra) was unchanged after P-, significantly increased after S- and decreased after T-treatment, when compared with U. The Rz roughness-parameter, calculated along the fixture Y-axis, of S, T, and P resulted similar and significantly lower than that of U. Rz (X-axis) resulted unchanged after P-, slightly increased (+40%) after T-, and greatly increased (+260%) after S-treatment, this latter being statistically significant when compared with U.
Conclusions:
The careful use of titanium-curettes could produce only minimal smooth surface alteration particularly over prolonged treatments, and avoid debris production that could endanger implant preservation.
