Early peri-implant bone loss: a prospective cohort study

The aim of this study was to measure the early peri-implant bone level changes before the completion of an implant–abutment connection and to evaluate the influence of demographic, biologically relevant, anatomical, and implant-specific variables on these changes. A prospective cohort study design was used. STROBE guidelines were followed. The sample comprised 493 implants placed using a two-stage surgical procedure. Random allocation was used to determine the implant placement depth. Peri-apical radiographs taken at implant insertion and at the second surgery 2 months later were matched. Kappa statistics were used to compute intra- and inter-examiner reliability. The statistical analysis was performed at the implant level. Two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with the Bonferroni adjusted post hoc test was used to evaluate the influence of variables. One-way ANOVA with Tukey's range test and unpaired Student t-tests were used to analyze significant variables. Early marginal bone remodelling was −0.86 mm. The timing of implant placement (P = 0.00) and the depth of implant placement (P ≤ 0.05) significantly influenced early bone remodelling. Relevant radiographic early bone loss was found, but implants initially positioned below the alveolar crest and inserted ≥3 months after tooth extraction showed statistically significant higher marginal bone loss during the healing phase.