Dentistry

Abstract

Clinical Evaluation of Bioabsorbable Mesh for Secondary Bone Grafts in the Alveolar Cleft

Tatsuo Shirota, Hiroshi Ogura, Maiko Suzuki, Ayako Akizuki, Takaaki Kamatani, Seiji Kondo and Tetsutaro Yamaguchi

Purpose: This study investigates whether a poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA)-polyglycolic acid (PGA) mesh-type bone joining material (PLLA-PGA mesh), a bioabsorbable osteosynthetic material, can replace titanium mesh for secondary bone grafts in the alveolar cleft.

Methods: The subjects were 6 patients who underwent secondary bone grafting in the alveolar cleft using the PLLA-PGA mesh and 6 patients treated with titanium mesh. Intraoral X-ray images and dental small-field CT (3DX) were taken over a period of 6 months postoperatively. Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was performed for two objective variables obtained from CT images namely the vertical height of the bony bridge and the labial-lingual thickness. A generalized linear model was also used to analyze a discrete objective variable, i.e., the score for the bony bridge height obtained from the occlusal X-ray image. In these analyses, the five explanatory variables used were mesh type, sex, age, grafted bone mass, and width of the alveolar cleft measured on the CT image.

Results: No significant factors were observed among the 5 explanatory variables with regard to influence on bony bridge thickness. Mesh type was the only significant factor influencing bony bridge height, and the height was greater when using PLLA-PGA mesh than when using titanium mesh. However, there were no significant factors influencing alveolar crest height on occlusal X-ray images.

Conclusions: There were no marked differences in bony bridge morphology in the alveolar cleft area between the PLLA-PGA and titanium mesh groups.