Assessment of Disinfection Potential of Q-Switch Nd: YAG Laser on Contaminated Titanium Implant Surfaces

Abstract

Peri-implantitis (PI) is a relatively frequent pathology that compromises the overall survival of the dental implant. Adjunctive approaches for the conventional mechanical debridement are being suggested to optimize the treatment of PI. The goal of the study was the assessment of the disinfection potential of the Q-Switch Nd: YAG laser on contaminated titanium implant surfaces. A total of 72 sterile titanium discs were used and divided into three groups: 24 contaminated titanium discs treated with the laser (study Group L), 24 contaminated titanium discs with no treatment (control 1—Group C), and 24 sterile titanium discs with no treatment (control 2—Group S). Multi-species biofilm was used: Porphyromonas gingivalis, Fusobacterium nucleatum, Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Streptococcus mutans, Streptococcus sobrinus, and Prevotella intermedia. Commensal bacteria were included also: Actinomyces naeslundii, Actinomyces viscosus, Streptococcus cristatus, Streptococcus gordonii, Streptococcus mitis, Streptococcus oralis, Streptococcus sanguinis, Streptococcus parasanguinis, and Veillonella parvula. Parameters delivered per pulse on the targeted surfaces of the titanium discs were an energy density of 0.597 J/cm2 each pulse, a pulse power of 270 mW, a laser beam spot of 2.4 mm in diameter, and a rate of repetition of 10 Hertz (Hz) for a pulse duration of 6 nanoseconds (ns). The mode was no contact, and a distance of 500 micrometers was used with a total time of irradiation equal to 2 s (s). The collection of microbiological samples was made for all groups; colony-forming units (CFU) were identified by two different practitioners, and the average of their examinations was considered for each sample. The average of the TBC (CFU/mL) was calculated for each group. Values were 0.000 CFU/mL, 4767 CFU/mL, and 0.000 CFU/mL for Group L, Group C, and Group S, respectively. Therefore, the suggested treatment protocol was able to provoke a total disinfection of the contaminated titanium surfaces. A statistical difference was only found between Group L vs. Group C and between Group S vs. Group C. The difference was not significant between Group S and Group L. In conclusion, the present study confirmed that the Q-Switch Nd: YAG laser under our specific conditions can provide a total disinfection of the contaminated titanium surfaces.

Effectiveness of mechanical and chemical decontamination methods for the treatment of dental implant surfaces affected by peri‐implantitis: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

“…Interestingly, in this study, there was a complete eradication of the microbial population present on the disks, a rare finding among studies reporting bacterial reduction (Namour et al, 2021).…”

“…Quality assessment of the included studies is presented in Table 2 . The estimated risk of bias for four studies (Eick et al, 2013 ; Ntrouka et al, 2011 ; Patianna et al, 2018 ; Tonon et al, 2020 ) was high; the remaining studies (Alagl et al, 2019 ; Azizi et al, 2018 ; Cai, Li, Wang, Chen, Jiang, Ge, Lei, Huang, 2019 ; Cho et al, 2015 ; Etemadi et al, 2020 ; Ghasemi et al, 2019 ; Karimi et al, 2021 ; Namour et al, 2021 ; Saffarpour et al, 2016 ) presented a medium risk of bias. The included in vitro studies did not present detailed information regarding sample size calculation, randomization methods, and operator details among other aspects considered in the QUIN tool.…”

“…The included studies consisted of nine articles using titanium disks (Abushahba et al, 2021 ; Cai, Li, Wang, Chen, Jiang, Ge, Lei, Huang, 2019 ; Cho et al, 2015 ; Eick et al, 2013 ; Etemadi et al, 2020 ; Ghasemi et al, 2019 ; Namour et al, 2021 ; Ntrouka et al, 2011 ; Tonon et al, 2020 ), and four studies (Azizi et al, 2018 ; Karimi et al, 2021 ; Patianna et al, 2018 ; Saffarpour et al, 2016 ) using dental implants. Given the large heterogeneity present in the selected studies, the data from dental implant samples and titanium disks were combined for the meta‐analysis.…”

“…Although mechanical therapy alone has shown significant improvements, it is commonly completed in conjunction with laser therapies or chemical means of decontamination. Laser therapy alone (Nd:YAG) was shown to be effective in reducing biofilm on the surface of SLA disks by Namour et al (Namour et al, 2021).…”

“…Although mechanical therapy alone has shown significant improvements, it is commonly completed in conjunction with laser therapies or chemical means of decontamination. Laser therapy alone (Nd:YAG) was shown to be effective in reducing biofilm on the surface of SLA disks by Namour et al (Namour et al, 2021 ). Interestingly, in this study, there was a complete eradication of the microbial population present on the disks, a rare finding among studies reporting bacterial reduction (Namour et al, 2021 ).…”