The Mechanical Properties and Biometrical Effect of 3D Preformed Titanium Membrane for Guided Bone Regeneration on...

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of three-dimensional preformed titanium membrane (3D-PFTM) to enhance mechanical properties and ability of bone regeneration on the peri-implant bone defect. 3D-PFTMs by new mechanically compressive molding technology and manually shaped- (MS-) PFTMs by hand manipulation were applied in artificial peri-implant bone defect model for static compressive load test and cyclic fatigue load test. In 12 implants installed in the mandibular of three beagle dogs, six 3D-PFTMs, and six collagen membranes (CM) randomly were applied to 2.5 mm peri-implant buccal bone defect with particulate bone graft materials for guided bone regeneration (GBR). The 3D-PFTM group showed about 7.4 times higher mechanical stiffness and 5 times higher fatigue resistance than the MS-PFTM group. The levels of the new bone area (NBA, %), the bone-to-implant contact (BIC, %), distance from the new bone to the old bone (NB-OB, %), and distance from the osseointegration to the old bone (OI-OB, %) were significantly higher in the 3D-PFTM group than the CM group (p < .001). It was verified that the 3D-PFTM increased mechanical properties which were effective in supporting the space maintenance ability and stabilizing the particulate bone grafts, which led to highly efficient bone regeneration.