Assessment of titanium and cobalt urinary release from dental implants by ICP-MS: A case-control study

Introduction

Dental implants are medical devices designed to replace missing teeth. They are usually made of titanium and cobalt. The present study aimed to evaluate the systematic release of cobalt and titanium in patients with dental implants.

Materials and methods

The present case-control study was conducted in dentistry establishments of the region of Chlef and included 24 patients with dental implants (group P) and 24 control subjects (group C). Titanium and cobalt urinary evels were quantified using Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry. The Shapiro–Wilk and Mann-whitney statistical tests were performed using R software.

Results

Assessed levels ranged from 0.001 to 0.025 and 0.020–3.900 ug.g ^{− 1} of creatinine for titanium and cobalt respectively. No statistically significant differences in titanium and cobalt urinary concentrations were found between the Group P and C (p = 0.521 and p = 0.577 for titanium and cobalt respectively). No statistically significant difference in titanium urinary levels was found between the smokers and non-smokers (p = 0.137). However, a statistically significant difference in cobalt urinary levels was found between the smokers and non-smokers (p = 0.002). In addition, a statistically significant difference in titanium and cobalt urinary levels was found between the subjects with and without orthopaedic implant (p = 0.001).

Conclusion

The results revealed that there was no significant release of titanium and cobalt through dental implants in the studied population. Further studies with multidisciplinary approach, long-term follow-up and larger sample are required to evaluate other metals release from dental and orthopaedic implants.