Association between smoking and peri-implant diseases: A retrospective study

To determine the association between tobacco and peri-implant diseases in a sample of patients who had received implant-supported restorations in a university dental clinic. Furthermore, the study aimed to investigate patient- and implant-related variables associated with peri-implant diseases.

The present retrospective study analyzed data from 117 patients treated with implant-supported restorations from 2001 to 2013. A total of 450 implants were evaluated. Patients were selected from an electronic database, and patient- and implant-related variables were evaluated. Detailed information regarding the smoking history (i.e., smoking status, lifetime cumulative dose, duration of exposure, intensity of the habit, and smoking cessation) was recorded. The primary study outcome was peri-implant status [i.e., health (H), peri-implant mucositis (PM) and peri-implantitis (PI)]. Univariate and multinomial regression models comparing PM and PI versus peri-implant health were conducted.

A total of 117 subjects [55 (47%) females and 62 (53%) males] with a mean age at examination of 64.2 years (SD 11.6) and rehabilitated with 450 implants were included. The average number of implants per patient was 4.6 (SD 3.3) with a mean time in function of 8.0 years (SD 1.9). Fifty-six patients (47.9%) were non-smokers, 42 (35.9%) were former-smokers, and 19 (16.2%) were current-smokers. Thirty-nine subjects (33.4%) were H, whereas 41 (35%) and 37 (31.6%) exhibited PM and PI, respectively. At implant level, the corresponding values were 142 (31.6%), 230 (51.1%) and 78 (17.3%). In the multinomial regression model, significant associations for peri-implant diseases were observed for the mean number of implants per patient (p = .016), function time (p = .048), implants placed simultaneously with guided bone regeneration (p = .016), implant surface (p = .020), keratinized mucosa at the buccal aspect (p = .032), and access to interproximal hygiene (p < .001). In addition, ever smokers >23 pack-years exhibited a significantly higher risk for peri-implantitis (p = .002). Finally, the multinomial regression analysis revealed that subjects who had stopped smoking more than 21 years before the last examination presented a significantly lower risk of peri-implant diseases than a smoking cessation of ≤21 years (p = .028).

Smoke intensity was associated with an increased risk of the development of peri-implantitis. Moreover, the risk of peri-implant diseases might be similar in those subjects who had stopped smoking for more than 21 years with respect to never-smokers.