Medical Plasma in Dentistry: A Future Therapy for Peri-implantitis

A novel cold atmospheric pressure air plasma jet for peri-implantitis treatment: An in vitro study

Peri-implantitis is difficult to treat in clinical settings; this is not only because it is a site-specific infectious disease but also because it impedes osseointegration. In this study, a novel cold atmospheric pressure air plasma jet (CAPAJ) was applied to study the treatment of peri-implantitis in vitro. CAPAJ treated the samples for 2, 4 and 6 min, respectively. To evaluate the titanium surface characteristics, the surface elemental composition (X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy [XPS]), roughness and hydrophilicity were evaluated in each group. Concurrently, the sterilization and osseointegration effect of CAPAJ were also examined. Results revealed that after CAPAJ modification, roughness and hydrophilicity of titanium surfaces were significantly increased. Moreover, XPS results demonstrated that the C1s peak was reduced and N1s and O1s peaks were obviously improved. More importantly, CAPAJ showed favorable sterilization and bone formation effects. CAPAJ seemed a simpler and more efficient strategy for the peri-implantitis treatment.

Antibacterial property expressed by a novel calcium phosphate glass

We have developed a calcium phosphate glass (CPG) doped with Zn(2+) or F(-) or combined Zn(2+) and F(-) ions, which are naturally found in the human body and play a dual role in bone formation and antibacterial activity. Previously, we have demonstrated that this family of CPGs has superior osteoconductive and resorbable properties in vivo. This study aimed to investigate the antibacterial property of CPGs incorporating Zn(2+) and/or F(-) . We used Streptococcus mutans as a model organism because it is one of the major human oral pathogens and an early colonizer, and it has been associated with several oral infections, such as dental caries, periodontitis, and peri-implantitis. CPGs of 0.01 and 0.05 g were incubated with S. mutans for 0, 2, 4, and 6 h. Serial dilutions were plated in triplicate and colony forming units were determined. The antimicrobial effect of CPG incorporating Zn(2+) or F(-) was greater than CPG incorporating both these ions. CPG without doping produced a moderate antimicrobial effect. This family of CPGs, previously shown to promote new bone formation in vivo, is demonstrated to have superior bactericidal properties.