Design and Examination of a Stability-detecting Device for Dental Implants

Design and Examination of a Stability-detecting Device for Dental Implants
27 June 2003
S.-Y. LEE, K.-Y. CHENG, H.-M. HUANG, and C.-T. LIN, Taipei Medical University, Taiwan
IADR
In current years, there have been many researches done concerning the detection of stability in root-form implant. However, most of the sensor devices available in the market are complicated, inconvenient or lacking in precision. Objective: In this study, a novel device based on resonance frequency analysis (RFA) was designed. Methods: After applying a low-voltage signal, the hammer is triggered to impact the tested implant. A non-contact acoustic sensor is placed on the topside of the tested implant to receive the vibration signal. Digital signal processing software was used to determine the RF value of the tested samples. To verify the efficacy of the proposed device, three tests were conducted. Results: The first test made use of a standard tonometer (f = 600 Hz). The value obtained was 588.38 ¨?" 0.84 Hz. Second, a test for the change in stability of the root form implant after implant placement was simulated by clamping the implant with a vise. When the clamping force increased from 2 kgf-cm to 10 kgf-cm, the RF values obtained were 5885.0 +/- 5.6 Hz to 7420.0 +/- 11.2 Hz. Still another test done was investing the dental implant in a bakelite cube with the height of the exposed portion of the implant set at 7 mm to 11 mm. The result of the RF values obtained ranged from 3727.5 +/- 18.5 Hz to 2470.0 +/- 21.4 Hz, depicting a gradual decrease. Conclusion: From the results of the in-vitro experiments previously mentioned, the signal acuity and precision of this new dental implant stability detector was substantially proven.