Ultrasonography for noninvasive and real‐time evaluation of peri‐implant tissue dimensions

Abstract Aim Existing methods for evaluating marginal bone loss and tissue biotype around dental implants present with many limitations. The aim of this study was to examine the accuracy of high‐resolution, 3‐dimensional ultrasound to measure peri‐implant tissue dimensions. Material and Methods A 25‐MHz ultrasound probe prototype was used to scan peri‐implant tissues of 17 implants from seven fresh human cadavers. Four ultrasonic measurements were made as follows: the marginal bone level/thickness, and mucosal level/thickness. The readings were statistically compared to cone beam computed tomography ( CBCT ) and/or open bone measurements. Results The correlations ( r ) between the ultrasound and direct/ CBCT readings of the four parameters ranged from 0.85 to 0.98 ( p < 0.0001). The mean absolute difference in the four parameters between ultrasound‐direct and ultrasound‐ CBCT ranged from 0.033 to 0.24 mm. Conclusion Encouraging evidence is shown that ultrasound can accurately measure peri‐implant tissue dimensions. Following clinical trial validations, ultrasound offers potential as a valuable tool to evaluate long‐term peri‐implant tissue stability without concerns of ionizing radiation and image artefacts around implants.