Comparison of zirconia and titanium implants after a short healing period. A pilot study in minipigs

The aim of this animal study was to investigate and compare the osseointegration of zirconia and titanium dental implants. 14 one-piece zirconia implants and 7 titanium implants were inserted into the mandibles of 7 minipigs. The zirconia implants were alternately placed submerged and non-submerged. To enable submerged healing, the supraosseous part was removed, using a diamond saw. The titanium implants were all placed submerged. After a healing period of 4 weeks, a histological analysis of the soft and hard tissue and a histomorphometric analysis of the bone–implant contact (BIC) and relative peri-implant bone-volume density (rBVD; relation to bone-volume density of the host bone) was performed. Two zirconia implants were found to be loose. All other implants were available for evaluation. For submerged zirconia and titanium implants, the implant surface showed an intimate connection to the neighbouring bone, with both types achieving a BIC of 53%. For the non-submerged zirconia implants, some crestal epithelial downgrowth could be detected, with a resultant BIC of 48%. Highest rBVD values were found for submerged zirconia (80%), followed by titanium (74%) and non-submerged zirconia (63%). The results suggest that unloaded zirconia and titanium implants osseointegrate comparably, within the healing period studied.