Oral and maxillofacial surgeryOnline only articleAlveolar bone changes in autogenous tooth transplantation

ObjectiveTo assess the alveolar bone formation after autogenous tooth transplantation by conventional radiographic method and digital subtraction radiography.Study designThis retrospective study was done in 54 of 136 patients who received the third molar tooth transplantation and attended the first week, as well as the 1-, 3-, 6-, 9-, and 12-month follow-up. Postoperative periapical radiographs were subsequently evaluated by direct visual interpretation and digital subtraction radiography. The data were analyzed by using McNemar test and 1-way repeated-measure analysis of variance as well as Bonferroni multiple comparison.ResultsFifty-four cases of transplantation were studied. Most of them had normal wound healing. The direct radiographic interpretation and digital subtraction radiography found significant alveolar bone formation in the first-and the third-month follow-ups (P < .05). Lamina dura appeared in the third month and kept increasing until the sixth month.ConclusionsPostoperative radiographs revealed the distinctive bone formation up to the third month. The clinical and radiographic assessment found that the third molar transplants could bear a normal chewing load within 3 months.