Radiographic assessment of changes in marginal bone around endosseous implants supporting mandibular overdentures

Objectives: To evaluate the reliability of a new method for quantification of radiographic changes in the marginal bone around implants. Methods: Three groups of seven patients treated with an overdenture supported by two endosseous implants (Branemark, n = 7 patients; IMZ, n = 7 patients; ITI Benefit, n = 7 patients) were selected. Six weeks after loading the implants, radiographs were obtained using the long cone technique and an aiming device, scanned and digitized, Two observers measured the height and area of the peri-implant bone defects twice. The difference between measurements was statistically analysed using paired t-tests. Results: There were small differences in interobserver error for the Branemark implant system (P0.05). Conclusions: The newly developed technique by measuring the area of the defect overcomes some drawbacks of existing techniques for quantification of peri-implant bone loss in the mandible