CONTROLLED LOCAL-DELIVERY OF TETRACYCLINE HCL IN THE TREATMENT OF PERIIMPLANT MUCOSAL HYPERPLASIA AND MUCOSITIS - A CONTROLLED CASE SERIES

The purpose of this controlled case series was to assess the adjunctiv e efficacy of controlled topical tetracycline HCl application in the t reatment of infection associated periimplant mucositis or mucosal hype rplasia. Eight patients with at least 2 endosseous implants showing cl inical signs of periimplant mucosal hyperplasia or mucositis were enro lled. All implants received supra-and subgingival scaling, with half o f the implants receiving adjunctive controlled local delivery of tetra cycline HCl (test). Control implants did not receive any other therapy aside from scaling. Clinical parameters were assessed at baseline, 4, and 12 weeks. Scaling plus controlled local delivery of tetracycline HCl markedly reduced periimplant mucosal hyperplasia in 4 of 5 test im plants and demonstrated a trend towards a reduction of bleeding on pro bing scores. Scaling alone had no effect on mucosal hyperplasia in the 2 control implants presenting with this condition nor bleeding on pro bing scores. In both groups, plaque index scores were slightly reduced at 4 weeks but returned to baseline values at 12 weeks, whereas pocke t probing depths, clinical attachment levels, and probing bone levels remained unchanged during the course of the trial. The observed trends suggest that scaling plus controlled local delivery of tetracycline H Cl may have beneficial effects. Randomized controlled trials employing a sample size high enough to reach sufficient statistical power are n eeded to definitively assess the efficacy of controlled local tetracyc line HCl delivery on periimplant diseases.