OSSEOINTEGRATION OF TEMPORARY ANCHORAGE DEVICES USING RECOMBINANT HUMAN BONE MORPHOGENETIC PROTEIN-2
Abstract
Over the past 5 years, the use of titanium implants as temporary anchorage devices (TADs) has become an important tool in clinical orthodontic practices. The use of TADs have provided orthodontists a way of moving teeth against fixed objects rather than against the surrounding teeth, which tend to counteract desired motion. At present, viable attachment of TADs involves direct insertion through gingival tissue and piercing of the bone. Surface modifications such as sandblasted and acid-etched treatment or bone morphogenetic protein surface treatment, however, can be applied to the TADs to promote enhanced osseointegration, thereby allowing the TADs to serve as stable anchors while avoiding bone puncture. In this study, a comparison was made between sandblasted/acid-etched TADs and sandblasted/acid-etched/recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 (rhBMP-2) treated TADs to determine whether rhBMP-2 promotes enhanced osseointegration. A total of 10 rats (4 controls and 6 treated with rhBMP-2) were used in the study, with 1 TAD placed on the skull of each rat. At the end of 6 weeks, the animals were euthanized by carbon dioxide asphyxiation, and bone blocks, each containing a TAD, were prepared for histological examination and biomechanical characterization. The results of this study showed that TADs treated with rhBMP-2 had greater bone formation at the bone-implant interface and an increase in total implant stability.