Clinical findings and history of bone loss at implant sites

Objectives The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether clinical findings at implant sites are relevant as screening tests for a history of marginal bone loss. Material and Methods 427 patients provided with implant-supported reconstructions 9 years earlier were evaluated clinically (probing pocket depth (PPD), bleeding on probing (BoP)) and radiographically. A history of bone loss was confirmed through baseline documentation. Diagnostic accuracy was evaluated through receiver operating characteristic curves and multi-level regression analyses. Results were expressed as sensitivity/specificity, area under the curve, and odds ratios. Results While the sensitivity of PPD in regard to bone loss was low, specificity was generally high. Multi-level modeling revealed that each additional millimeter of PPD corresponded to an additional bone loss of 0.30 mm (95% CI 0.27; 0.33). The sensitivity of BOP in regard to bone loss >2 mm was 80.9% (95% CI 73.9; 86.7), while the specificity was 42.2% (95% CI 39.6; 44.8). Conclusions Clinical parameters at implant sites obtained at a single time point were associated with a history of marginal bone loss. While BoP demonstrated a high level of sensitivity, the sensitivity of PPD was generally low. The present data suggest that BoP is a relevant screening test for history of bone loss.