Bone healing, tissue effects and biomechanical fixation of ‘smooth’ ceramic-coated zirconia-based dental implants: An in vivo study in sheep

In this study, the effect of coating a zirconia-based ceramic oral implant with a material of the same composition to build a relatively smooth surface with three different porosity features was evaluated in vivo, at 4 and 8 weeks after implantation in sheep femoral condyles. The results showed that at 4 weeks, the three coated zirconia-based implants with smoother surface topographies behaved similarly and promoted faster bone healing compared to the results obtained in the same zirconia- or titanium-based implants, but with rougher sandblasted and acid-etched surfaces. In addition, higher pull-out strengths were estimated in the coated-ceramic sample compared to titanium sandblasted and etched one. The present work showed that zirconia coatings with smoother surfaces than those conventionally used in the market improved the early phase of bone healing, paving the way for shorter treatment times and improved patient outcomes.