# Dental Implants Used for Orthodontic Anchorage in Patients with Treated Stage IV Periodontitis: A Retrospective Case–Control Study

## TL;DR

This study shows dental implants can safely support orthodontic treatments in patients with severe, treated periodontitis over a long period.

## Contribution

The study provides long-term evidence on the viability of dental implants as orthodontic anchorage in periodontally compromised patients.

## Key findings

- Dental implants used for orthodontic anchorage showed no significant difference in bone loss compared to non-anchorage implants.
- Poor oral hygiene and lack of keratinized mucosa increased the risk of peri-implantitis.
- No dental implants were lost during a 17-year follow-up period.

## Abstract

Little is known about the effects of orthodontic loading on dental implants used for orthodontic anchorage in patients with Stage IV periodontitis. This retrospective case–control study included 58 dental implants in 24 patients with treated Stage IV periodontitis. The dental implants were used for both chewing function and orthodontic anchorages. The outcome measures included peri-implant marginal bone loss and peri-implantitis. Pair t-test and Wilcoxon rank-sum test were used to analyze the impact of implants as orthodontic anchorage on marginal bone loss (MBL) and peri-implantitis. No implants were lost during the 17-year follow-up. There was no statistically significant difference in the MBL and incidence of peri-implantitis between implants used as orthodontic anchorage and non-anchorage controls. (p > 0.05). Poor oral hygiene (p = 0.05), one-piece implants (p = 0.05) and implants with a keratinized mucosa < 2 mm (p = 0.015) were associated with a higher risk of peri-implantitis. Results from the present long-term study indicated that dental implants could be successfully used as orthodontic anchorage in periodontal compromised patients.