Effect of Simvastatin on Bone Regeneration: A Histologic and Histomorphometric Analysis

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of simvastatin administration as an osteoinductive agent combined with bovine bone material (BBM) for augmentation of human maxillary sinuses.

In the present randomized clinical trial with a split-mouth design, 24 maxillary sinuses in 12 patients were augmented using BBM alone or BBM combined with simvastatin. Biopsy samples were taken 9 months after maxillary sinus floor augmentation for histologic and histomorphometric analyses. A total of 44 implants were placed in the augmented bone.

The results of the microscopic assessment of most samples revealed no inflammation or only mild chronic inflammation. Lamellation was detectable in old bone trabeculae under polarized light microscopy but was not observed in newly formed bone. Osteocytes were found with a lower frequency in the lacunae of newly formed bone compared with normal bone. No significant differences were found in the amount of newly formed bone and the amount of residual particles between the 2 groups.

Despite the greater mean percentage of newly formed bone in the test group, the histomorphometric analysis results did not show a significant positive effect for the use of simvastatin in maxillary sinus augmentation.