No deleterious effect of low dose methotrexate on titanium implant osseointegration in a rabbit model

Dental implant considerations in patients with systemic diseases: An updated comprehensive review

BACKGROUND

Various medical conditions and the drugs used to treat them have been shown to impede or complicate dental implant surgery. It is crucial to carefully monitor the medical status and potential post-operative complications of patients with systemic diseases, particularly elderly patients, to minimize the risk of health complications that may arise.

AIM

The purpose of this study was to review the existing evidence on the viability of dental implants in patients with systemic diseases and to provide practical recommendations to achieve the best possible results in the corresponding patient population.

METHODS

The information for our study was compiled using data from PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and Google Scholar databases and searched separately for each systemic disease included in our work until October 2023. An additional manual search was also performed to increase the search sensitivity. Only English-language publications were included and assessed according to titles, abstracts and full texts.

RESULTS

In total, 6784 studies were found. After checking for duplicates and full-text availability, screening for the inclusion criteria and manually searching reference lists, 570 articles remained to be considered in this study.

CONCLUSION

In treating patients with systemic conditions, the cost-benefit analysis should consider the patient's quality of life and expected lifespan. The success of dental implants depends heavily on ensuring appropriate maintenance therapy, ideal oral hygiene standards, no smoking and avoiding other risk factors. Indications and contraindications for dental implants in cases of systemic diseases are yet to be more understood; broader and hardcore research needs to be done for a guideline foundation.

Implant-based oral rehabilitation in systemic sclerosis patients: a systematic review

Systemic sclerosis is a rare multisystem autoimmune disorder that significantly impacts the orofacial region. Several oral features including microstomia and increased tooth loss contribute to the mouth-related disability. Prosthetic rehabilitation is very challenging in these patients. As the spectrum of dental implants indications has been recently extended to patients with various systemic disorders, the aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the outcome of dental implants in patients with systemic sclerosis. A literature search was conducted in Medline/PubMed database to identify eligible case-reports. 10 publications were included in qualitative synthesis. A total of 71 implants have been reported in 10 patients with systemic sclerosis with a mean of 7.1 +/- 3.8 implants per patient. Pre-implant surgeries have been described for 3 patients. Implant survival rates were higher than 98% but the mean follow-up time was only 28.3 +/- 18.6 months. Complications have been observed in 3 patients with 1 implant failure and peri-implant bone resorption in 2 patients. Although implant survival rates were high, an individualized assessment of risk-benefit balance is mandatory before indicating implant-based rehabilitation in patients suffering from systemic sclerosis and a scrupulous maintenance program has to be implemented. Further studies are strongly required to establish clinical guidelines.

Osseointegration Pharmacology: A Systematic Mapping Using Artificial Intelligence

Clinical performance of osseointegrated implants could be compromised by the medications taken by patients. The effect of a specific medication on osseointegration can be easily investigated using traditional systematic reviews. However, assessment of all known medications requires the use of evidence mapping methods. These methods allow assessment of complex questions, but they are very resource intensive when done manually. The objective of this study was to develop a machine learning algorithm to automatically map the literature assessing the effect of medications on osseointegration. Datasets of articles classified manually were used to train a machine-learning algorithm based on Support Vector Machines. The algorithm was then validated and used to screen 599,604 articles identified with an extremely sensitive search strategy. The algorithm included 281 relevant articles that described the effect of 31 different drugs on osseointegration. This approach achieved an accuracy of 95%, and compared to manual screening, it reduced the workload by 93%. The systematic mapping revealed that the treatment outcomes of osseointegrated medical devices could be influenced by drugs affecting homeostasis, inflammation, cell proliferation and bone remodeling. The effect of all known medications on the performance of osseointegrated medical devices can be assessed using evidence mappings executed with highly accurate machine learning algorithms.

Evaluation of Effect of Low-Dose Methotrexate on Osseointegration of Implants: A Biomechanical Study on Dogs

Background:

Methotrexate (MTX) is an immunosuppressive drug, widely used in inflammatory disturbances including rheumatoid arthritis. However, there is no consensus regarding the effect of MTX on implant osseointegration.

Objective:

The purpose of this experimental study was to investigate the effect of low dose MTX on Bone-Implant Contact (BIC) of dogs.

Methods:

Six mandibular premolar teeth (bilateral) of 8 mature dogs were extracted. After 3 months of healing, 6 implants (bone level, resorbable blast media surface) were inserted into the mandible of each dog (3 in each side). Dogs were randomly divided into a study group (receiving 2.5 mg/week MTX orally, 3 times per week for 4 weeks) and a control group each containing 4 dogs. In the 1^st week, postoperative BIC was evaluated in 4 dogs, two from each group. In the 4^th week, reverse torque and BIC were evaluated in the remaining 4 dogs. Data were analyzed with two-way ANOVA test for 95% confidence interval.

Results:

The reverse torque test of the 4^th week, showed a satisfying osseointegration. Histopathologic evaluation revealed that the BIC was significantly higher in the control group in comparison to the MTX group in the 1^st and 4^th week. In addition, the BIC of both groups were significantly increased in the 4^th week in comparison to the 1^st week in both groups.

Conclusion:

MTX has the potential to interfere with osseointegration process.

Effect of methotrexate on bone and wound healing

INTRODUCTION

Methotrexate (MTX) is one of the most commonly used disease modifying drugs administered for wide spectrum of conditions. Through the expansion of the indications of MTX use, an increasing number of patients nowadays attend orthopaedic departments receiving this pharmacological agent. The aim of this manuscript is to present our current understanding on the effect of MTX on bone and wound healing. Areas covered: The authors offer a comprehensive review of the existing literature on the experimental and clinical studies analysing the effect of MTX on bone and wound healing. The authors also analyse the available literature and describe the incidence of complications after elective orthopaedic surgery in patients receiving MTX. Expert opinion: The available experimental data and clinical evidence are rather inadequate to allow any safe scientific conclusions on the effect of MTX on bone healing. Regarding wound healing, in vitro and experimental animal studies suggest that MTX can adversely affect wound healing, whilst the clinical studies show that lose-dose MTX is safe and does not affect the incidence of postoperative wound complications.