IMMUNOHISTOCHEMICAL STUDY OF THE SOFT-TISSUE AROUND LONG-TERM SKIN-PENETRATING TITANIUM IMPLANTS

Bone-anchored percutaneous titanium implants have become a well-establ ished clinical procedure with a low incidence of adverse reactions. Ho wever, passage through the skin leads to a breach in the barrier to ex ogenous pathogens. In the present study, monoclonal antibodies were us ed to investigate the distribution of lymphocyte subpopulations in the soft tissue around such implants. Eight biopsies from patients with c linically irritated skin, five from non-irritated and eight from skin without skin-penetrating implants were analysed. The number of immune cells was increased in the group of patients with skin penetration com pared with patients without skin penetration. In the group with clinic al irritation there was an increased level of B-lymphocytes compared w ith those without irritation. The data suggest that there is an immuno logical compensation for the mechanical loss in barrier function at th ese implants and that an antibody-mediated response is present at clin ical signs of irritation.