Although bones may seem like hard and lifeless structures, bones are living tissues that are like muscle. Bones respond to exercise and a healthy diet by becoming stronger. Bones make up our skeletons and provide structure and support for our bodies. However, bones are more than that; they also act like a storehouse for minerals that our bodies need, such as calcium. During a person's lifetime, the body constantly breaks down old bone (through a process called resorption) and builds up new bone. Any time old bone is broken down faster than new bone is made, net bone loss occurs. Bone loss can lead to low bone density (osteopenia), weakness of the bone, and eventually osteoporosis.
Osteoporosis (or porous bone) is a disease in which bones become weak and fragile. Porous bones are more likely to break. Osteoporosis is a serious disease that affects millions of people worldwide. Without prevention or treatment, osteoporosis can progress without pain or symptoms until a bone breaks (fracture). Fractures commonly occur in the hip, spine, and wrist. Osteoporosis is the underlying cause of more than 1.5 million fractures annually (300,000 hip fractures, approximately 700,000 vertebral fractures, 250,000 wrist fractures, and more than 300,000 fractures in other areas). The estimated national cost (hospitals and nursing homes) for osteoporosis and related injuries is $14 billion each year in the United States.
Bone loss around dental implants is far more common than previously realised, reveals a thesis from the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. Around a quarter of patients loose some degree of supporting bone around their implants.
The study analysed
X-rays of over 600 patients. The more implants a patient had in the jaw, the more common it was to find loss of supporting bone. Just over a quarter 28 per cent of patients had lost some degree of supporting bone around their implants.
"Contrary to what we had previously assumed, the bone loss in these patients was not linear, but instead accelerated with time," says consultant dental surgeon Christer Fransson, who wrote the thesis. "This is a new discovery that shows just how important it is to detect and treat bone loss around implants at an early stage."
Smoking is one of several factors that increase the risk of bone loss. In the study smokers had more implants with bone loss than non-smokers.
The thesis also shows that the soft tissues surrounding an implant with bone loss is often inflamed. "It's important to examine the tissues around implants in the same way as we examine the tissues around teeth," says Fransson. "In that way we can notice early signs of inflammation and treat it before the bone loss has any serious consequences."
