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Dentistry Journal logoLink to Dentistry Journal
. 2024 Jul 19;12(7):226. doi: 10.3390/dj12070226

Microbial Leakage through Three Different Implant–Abutment Interfaces on Morse Taper Implants In Vitro

Ricardo Faria Ribeiro 1,*, Victor Barboza da Mata 1, Lucas de Oliveira Tomaselli 1, Anselmo Agostinho Simionato 1, Emerson de Souza Santos 2, Adriana Cláudia Lapria Faria 1, Renata Cristina Silveira Rodrigues 1, Cássio do Nascimento 1,*
Editors: David Gillam, Roberto Sorrentino
PMCID: PMC11275855  PMID: 39057013

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate microbial leakage by means of genome counts, through the implant–abutment interface in dental implants with different Morse taper abutments. Fifty-six samples were prepared and divided in four groups: CMC TB (14 Cylindrical Implants–14 TiBase Abutments), CMX TB (14 Conical Implants–14 TiBase Abutments), CMX PU (14 Conical Implants–14 Universal Abutment) and CMX U (14 Tapered Implants–14 UCLA Abutments). Assemblies had their interface submerged in saliva as the contaminant. Samples were subjected either to thermomechanical cycling (2 × 106 mechanical cycles with frequency of 5 Hz and load of 120 N simultaneously with thermal cycles of 5–55 °C) or thermal cycling (5–55 °C). After cycling, the contents from the inner parts of assemblies were collected and analyzed using the Checkerboard DNA–DNA hybridization technique. Significant differences in the total genome counts were found after both thermomechanical or thermal cycling: CMX U > CMX PU > CMX TB > CMC TB. There were also significant differences in individual bacterial counts in each of the groups (p < 0.05). Irrespective of mechanical cycling, the type of abutment seems to influence not only the total microbial leakage through the interface, but also seems to significantly reflect differences considering individual target species.

Keywords: dental implants, dental implant–abutment design, microbiological phenomena

1. Introduction

With the continuous advancement of rehabilitation materials and techniques, implant-supported restorations have been extensively used in dentistry with a very high predictability rate of both success and survival [1]. Although the use of osseointegrable implants can be considered safe and predictable, the oral environment presents itself as one of the most challenging places in the human body, bringing mechanical, thermal and acidity variations and, mainly, microbial challenges. The use of two-part dental implants presents as advantages the reliable standard protocol and easy handling of peri-implant tissues, providing several possibilities of the transmucosal area, prosthetic heights, diameters and angulation. However, these systems still have a major concern related to the implant–abutment interface; to date, it has not been possible to make it impervious to the passage of microorganisms, including those that may cause peri-implant diseases [2].

The presence of microorganisms at this interface, if not controlled, can result in inflammatory processes and cause damage to peri-implant tissues as the bacterial presence activates inflammatory cells, inducing osteoclastic action and consequent bone loss [3]. Scanning electron microscopy images demonstrate the presence of bacteria at the implant–abutment interface in failed implants, suggesting that these bacteria might be part of the factors causing inflammation and consequent bone loss in the region [4].

It already seems clear from the literature that Morse taper connections tend to present a lower amount of bacterial penetration through the interface region, resulting in the reduced contamination of the inner parts of the implant components. Most of these studies have compared conical and external hexagon connections, but also often include an internal hexagon [2]. The ostensible comparison between these three renowned interfaces and the considerable number of works demonstrating the superiority of conical connections in the reduction of bacterial infiltrate can lead the reader, clinician or even researcher to the erroneous understanding that all conical connections behave in the same way. In a study, Bella et al. compared indexed (two-piece) and non-indexed (solid one-piece) conical connection abutments and found a statistical difference in the bacterial infiltrate between them [5]. Among conical connections, we can find numerous differences; the angulation of the cone in relation to the long axis of the implant, the fixation of the implant using a through screw (two-piece) or a solid abutment and the material that the abutment is made of. The macrogeometry of implants can also play a relevant role in the passage of microorganisms and other substances into the implants, since the distribution of forces throughout the systems can alter the micro-movements of the components and influence the microgaps into the interface.

Therefore, it is important to have knowledge about how the connections of three different abutments that are widely used in dental clinics behave: Universal abutment, widely used due to its simplicity, reliability and good adaptation; UCLA-type abutments, which, due to their low cost and because they represent a direct connection from the implant platform, are widely used in cases of reduced transmucosal tissue, but may represent a potential risk for the passage of microorganisms due to the finishing process and polishing, as seen in a study by Rismanchian et al. [6]; and the TiBase abutments that are gaining strength nowadays due to their versatility and the possibility of inserting oral rehabilitation through implants in the digital dentistry world, but their use on a large scale must be carried out with caution, since the literature shows differences in the misadaptation gap between different manufacturers of TiBase abutments [7]. Also, how the shape of the implants can influence the adaptation of the components and the passage of microorganisms after loading should be investigated.

The specificities of each system or components, such as changes in the insertion torque, through screw and composition of the implant alloys can generate different types of bacterial infiltrates and these can be associated with the inflammatory processes that give rise to peri-implantitis. Socransky et al. demonstrated that different bacteria are related to different clinical parameters, which allows us to relate certain bacterial complexes to different clinical situations [8]. The Checkerboard DNA–DNA hybridization detection methodology used in this study allows the simultaneous identification and quantitation of up to 45 different species of microorganisms in the same sample [9].

Knowledge of the behavior of different implants and components in the face of the passage of microorganisms can provide relevant information not only to encourage new research in this area of knowledge, but also help the rehabilitation dentist when making decisions in the phase of choosing implants and prosthetic components aiming for the greater predictability of long-term treatment success. In this context, the objective of this study was to evaluate the bacterial infiltrate recovered from three different conical connections (universal abutment, Co-Cr UCLA and TiBase 4CAD) after thermomechanical cycling. The hypotheses tested were that there would be differences in the bacterial quantitation between conical and cylindrical implants with different connections and both thermal and thermomechanical simulations would influence the results.

2. Materials and Methods

2.1. Experimental Design

This is a randomized in vitro experimental study, with parallel groups, investigating the leakage of microorganisms through the implant–abutment interface of a system with cylindrical and conical implants, with Morse taper connection and different prosthetic abutments. The research was carried out at the Molecular Dental Diagnostic Laboratory of the School of Dentistry of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo. Human saliva was used as contaminant media, the study protocol was approved by the Local Ethics Committee under the number CAAE: 25836819.2.0000.5419 and all experiments were carried out with the participants’ written consent.

2.2. Implant and Abutment Selection and Constitution of Study Groups

This research involved the use of grade 4 titanium dental implants (n = 56) with Morse taper connection (Singular Implants, Natal, RN, Brazil), of which 42 had a conical shape (CMX; 4.0 × 13—Ref: 100.194) and 14 cylindrical (CMC; 4.0 × 13—Ref: 100.124). All implants used in the study are indicated for intraosseous use, with an internal cone angulation measuring 11.5°. The abutments investigated were as follows: (TB) Tibase 4 CAD CM N—1.5 mm (n = 28; Ref: 126.125; Figure 1), (PU) Universal abutment CM—3.3 × 4–1.5 mm (n = 14; Ref: 119.014; Figure 2) and (U) UCLA Co-Cr CM—1.5 mm (n = 14; Ref: 103.120; Figure 3). Among the 14 samples in each group, we separated 10 samples for the thermomechanical cycle and 4 samples we removed from the mechanical challenge, which then underwent solely thermal cycling.

Figure 1.

Figure 1

Tibase 4 CAD abutment.

Figure 2.

Figure 2

Universal Abutment.

Figure 3.

Figure 3

UCLA abutment.

2.3. Collecting Negative Control and Abutment Fixation

All the implants and components used were previously sterilized by gamma ray; however, to ensure that there were no pre-existing bacteria, before implant–abutment assembly, samples from the inner parts of the implants and the surfaces of the screws from all samples were collected with the aid of sterilized microbrushes serving as negative control for contamination, with a total of 56 samples obtained. Samples were stored individually in microtubes with 80 μL of TE buffer solution (10 Mm Tris-HCl, 1 Mm EDTA pH 7.6; Figure 4).

Figure 4.

Figure 4

Sample taken from the inner part of the implants and components before thermocycling.

The implant–abutment set was connected using a digital torquemeter (Torque Meter TQ 8800, Instrutherm, São Paulo, Brazil) which was fitted to a delineator created in the Department of Dental Materials and Prosthetics of the School of Dentistry of Ribeirão Preto-USP to maintain standardized positioning of the prosthetic key for applying force (torque). The abutments were connected to the implants applying the torque load Ncm recommended by the manufacturer and experimental groups were as follows: CMC TB (32 Ncm), CMX TB (32 Ncm), CMX PU (32 Ncm) and CMX U (20 Ncm).

As recommended in the literature, after 10 min of applying the load recommended by the manufacturer, the retaining screw was retorqued applying the same load, aiming to avoid loss of torque resulting from the deformation and flow of the components [10,11].

All component attachment steps took place using a laminar flow, with the work surface disinfected with 70% alcohol and previously sterilized for 30 min by ultraviolet light. The glassware, tweezers and keys for applying force were previously sterilized in an autoclave and the researchers were equipped with personal protective equipment.

2.4. Polyurethane Bases and Sample Positioning

The 56 implant–abutment sets were embedded in polyurethane to be subjected to thermocycling and cyclic loading prior to the microbial contamination test. A silicone base was used as a mold to construct the test specimens. On a precision scale, 7.5 g of Polyol + 7.5 g of Isocyanate (Isocyanate F 160, Sika Axson, Madison Heights, MI, USA) were weighed, manipulated for 30 s, poured onto the silicone base and awaited the polymerization process, as recommended by the manufacturer.

To standardize the implants positioning on polyurethane base, an adjustable base parallelometer was used. The silicone base was positioned on the parallelometer base and the implant–prosthetic abutment set was connected to the mobile rod, ensuring the same position in all sets.

The positioning of the implants was carried out so that the prosthetic platform was at the level of the polyurethane surface, simulating an implant at bone level.

2.5. The 3D Crowns

Three-dimensional resin crowns in the shape of a maxillary canine were fabricated using the Autodesk MeshMixer version 3.5 software (Autodesk Inc., San Rafael, CA, USA) for the cyclic load simulation on the assemblies. A profile projector (Profile Projector Model 6C, Nikon, Tokyo, Japan) was used to standardize the crown dimensions for the different abutments. The crowns (Figure 5) were printed on the Phrozen Sonic 4K 3D printer [Phrozen Tech. Co., Hsinchu City, Taiwan (R.O.C.)] with 3D temporary resin (Printax, Phrozen Tech. Co.). The loading applicators, 15 mm in diameter × 15 mm in width and with an angulation in the internal region of 10° that were coupled to the fatigue machine, were also manufactured in printed 3D resin, following the same protocol as the crowns.

Figure 5.

Figure 5

Three-dimensional resin-printed crowns in the shape of a maxillary canine.

2.6. Saliva Collecting

To collect the unstimulated human saliva used as a contaminant media for the implant assemblies, 20 healthy adults were selected among students and employees of the university itself. Participants of both genders with no signs and symptoms of systemic diseases or infections in the oral cavity were included. Furthermore, a group of participants with similar ages and environmental conditions was sought, aiming for uniform saliva samples. Collections were always carried out at the same time and place.

Each participant contributed 6 mL of saliva. After individual collecting, samples from the 20 participants were pooled and homogenized for 3 min and transferred to a single tube constituting the contaminant media and stored in a bacteriological oven at 37 °C throughout the cyclic loading and thermocycling test (Figure 6).

Figure 6.

Figure 6

Tube with saliva collected from participants that served as a contaminant for the samples.

2.7. Final Preparation of Specimens and Contamination Test

After re-torque, the screw access channel was sealed with Teflon tape and light-polymerizable microhybrid composite resin (Applic Flow-Maquira), then the crown was cemented onto the components with Polyether (Impregum soft—3M).

Rubber tubes were fixed to the polyurethane with water-based silicone and, in this way, the implant–abutment assembly was isolated from the external environment in a reservoir for placing saliva during the cyclic load application test. Next, 3 mL of saliva was inserted into each of the reservoirs (Figure 7). The volume of saliva added was sufficient to cover the implant–prosthetic abutment connection interface without reaching the access hole of the abutment fixation screw, in order to minimize the passage of microorganisms from saliva through any route other than the implant–abutment interface. At the end of the cyclic loading test, samples (n = 10) from the tube containing the human saliva used as contaminant media were collected and used as positive control to verify the microbial profile of the saliva before and after the loading test period.

Figure 7.

Figure 7

Pipette inserting the collected saliva into the implant–abutment interface before the thermomechanical test.

2.8. Thermomechanical Cycling

Ten implant–abutment sets from each group were subjected to the cyclic load test. The chewing mechanical fatigue machine (BIOPDI—Equipment for research into medical and dental materials, São Carlos, Brazil) was used to simulate human chewing, which is in the Biomechanics Laboratory of the School of Dentistry of Ribeirão Preto. This machine made it possible to conduct dynamic tests on 10 specimens simultaneously. Force applicators were made on the 10 pistons using a 3D resin printer. The 10 pistons used to apply load acted independently on each specimen.

The loading of each specimen during the simulation of chewing cycles occurred through a system of springs. The load was applied during thermal cycles of 5–55 °C (25 s of filling, 5 min of residence and 35 s of emptying). This loading application process was carried out automatically.

The test specimens’ sets, as seen in Figure 8, immersed in saliva were fixed to the base of the testing machine, remaining juxtaposed, since their polyurethane bases were built with the same dimensions as the machine’s fixing niches. The specimens were positioned and the load was applied incisally from the prosthetic crown to the long axis of the implant. The entire system was sealed with flexible adhesive film (Parafilm, Neehan, WI, USA), which allowed its isolation from the external environment.

Figure 8.

Figure 8

Thermomechanical cycling test machine with the specimens fixed and the load applicators.

The machine was programmed for the controlled application of a load of 120 N through the loading applicators in the incisal region of each crown. The 2 × 106 cycles were performed, with a frequency of 5 Hz. Simultaneously, the base to which each specimen was fixed performed horizontal movements of 1 mm to the right side and 1 mm to the left side, replicating the excursive mandible movements.

2.9. Thermocycling Test

The specimens were also tested for the passage of microorganisms when subjected to thermal cycling only, without cyclic loading. Four implant–prosthetic abutment sets from each of the 4 groups analyzed were fixed to polyurethane and submerged in 3 mL of human saliva and coupled to the base of the fatigue machine, undergoing only thermocycling, without applying force.

2.10. Assessment of Microbial Leakage Using Checkerboard DNA–DNA Hybridization Method

Samples from the inner part of the implant–abutment assemblies subjected to either thermocycling tests with cyclic load or thermocycling were collected to identify and quantify the microorganisms that penetrate through the interface. For this, the Checkerboard DNA–DNA hybridization method was used according to Socransky et al. with a modification by do Nascimento et al. [9,12].

Before collecting, the rubber tubes were removed from the polyurethane base of assemblies and all the external surfaces of experimental and control sets were carefully washed with 70% alcohol and dried with sterilized gauze pads. The crowns were then removed from the prosthetic abutment with the aid of hemostatic forceps. The sets were reopened to collect content from the inside of the implants and fixation screw threads using sterile microbrushes. The samples were individually inserted in microtubes containing 150 μL of TE buffer solution and stored at 4 °C until laboratorial processing.

For this study, 40 different microbial species were selected, ranging from the initial colonizers of the microbial biofilm to species considered pathogenic for the development of periodontal and peri-implant diseases. Four species of Candida, commonly detected in the oral cavity, were included: Candida tropicalis, Candida glabrata, Candida dubliniensis, Candida albicans, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Streptococcus gallolyticus, Veillonella parvula, Treponema denticola, Tannerella forsythia, Streptococcus sobrinus, Streptococcus sanguinis, Streptococcus salivarius, Staphylococcus pasteuri, Streptococcus parasanguinis, Streptococcus oralis, Streptococcus mutans, Solobacterium moorei, Streptococcus mitis, Streptococcus constellatus, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas putida, Prevotella nigrescens, Parvimona micra, Prevotella melaninogenica, Prevotella inter media, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Porphyromonas endodontalis, Peptostreptococcus anaerobius, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Mycoplasma salivarium, Lactobacillus casei, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Fusobacterium nucleatum, Enterococcus faecalis, Eikenella corrodens, Escherichia coli, Campylobacter rectus, Capnocytophaga gingivalis, Bacteroides fragilis and Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans.

2.11. Data Analysis

Data from Checkerboard DNA–DNA hybridization were analyzed using the CLIQS 1D software (Totallab, Newcastle, UK). The approximate number of microbial cells (genome counts) present in each investigated sample was estimated by comparing the intensity of the hybridization signals obtained by the intersection of the samples against the labeled probes in relation to the intensity of the standards containing 105 and 106 cells from each of the 40 target species.

Descriptive analysis of the data was performed, including point estimators such as means, medians and quartiles (first quartile—Q1—and third quartile—Q3), according to their distribution and variance of experimental errors. Data normality was verified by visual inspection of density graphs, histograms and Q-Q plots and confirmed by the Shapiro–Wilk significance test. Homoscedasticity was verified by Levene’s test. The analysis of the effect of the abutments and thermocycling or cyclic load tests on the count of microorganisms was carried out using the non-parametric and multifactorial Brunner–Langer method with Bonferroni adjustment. Considering the multifactorial and correlational nature of microbiological data, the Generalized Estimating Equations—GEE—model was used to compare the microbial profile between groups. Data were processed using the statistical software R (R software, version 4.1.0; R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria) and differences were considered significant at p value < 0.05.

3. Results

None of the negative control samples from all of the evaluated groups, collected from inside the implants prior to the thermocycling and cyclic loading test, showed positive results for microbial presence, ensuring the sterilization effectiveness carried out by the manufacturer.

After the thermocycling and cyclic loading test, all implant–abutment sets of all abutments investigated showed the presence of microorganisms, totaling 2,041,551 recorded genomes. A similar result was observed for the abutments that were subjected only to the thermal test, with a total of 1,997,290 genomes. Among the groups subjected to thermocycling and cyclic loading, the median total genome count, in order from highest to lowest, was CMC TB (627,805), CMX TB (572,820), CMX PU (519,282) and CMX U (321,644). Among the groups subjected only to thermal cycling, the medians were CMC TB (617,112), CMX TB (550,809), CMX PU (513,847) and CMX U (315,522).

The groups investigated showed significant differences in the genome counts (WTS and ATS; p < 0.005). Figure 9 illustrates the median, maximum and minimum values and interquartile range of the total genome counts of microbial cells from samples collected inside the implants and fixation screws subjected or not to cyclic loading, while in Table 1, Table 2, Table 3 and Table 4, the values referring to the individual count of each of the 40 target species evaluated in the study are described. The lowest values recorded between the thermocycling and cyclic load groups were the CMX U group, while the CMC TB and CMX TB groups presented the highest values (Tukey; p < 0.005). Among the thermocycling groups, the one that presented the best results was also the CMX U group.

Figure 9.

Figure 9

Box Plot with median, maximum and minimum values and interquartile range of quantification of total genomes of the 40 target species identified in the screw threads and inside the implant of the groups subjected to cyclic loading (C) and thermocycling (T).

Table 1.

CMC TB Group. Minimum (Min), 1st Quartile, median, mean, 3rd Quartile and maximum (Max) of the 40 target species detected in the screw threads and inside the implant.

Thermomechanical Loading Thermocycling
Min 1st Quartile Median Mean 3rd Quartile Max Min 1st Quartile Median Mean 3rd Quartile Max
Candida tropicalis 499,465 516,712 534,038 547,554 557,708 651,489 400,259 523,034 537,468 527,930 542,365 556,524
Candida glabrata 471,179 544,496 602,260 599,857 615,837 811,410 431,936 503,807 561,537 563,680 621,410 699,708
Candida dubliniensis 475,402 504,454 539,168 544,929 567,558 683,705 512,943 573,779 595,362 583,010 604,592 628,377
Candida albicans 503,754 514,799 534,297 552,731 584,323 649,825 480,652 512,195 523,533 551,795 563,133 679,463
S. pneumoniae 504,896 567,937 597,443 587,463 621,210 642,731 595,870 598,772 612,444 625,121 638,792 679,728
S. gallolyticus 507,870 546,434 579,044 587,641 615,521 697,752 589,889 638,313 655,077 644,569 661,366 678,234
V. parvula 539,243 590,354 597,497 606,167 635,940 658,358 567,120 585,344 593,449 588,217 596,322 598,849
T. denticola 483,362 578,609 656,805 660,446 763,000 828,167 561,773 586,472 647,304 653,646 714,479 758,203
T. forsythia 558,789 611,798 683,665 746,543 755,839 134,4715 659,659 704,875 722,092 723,360 740,576 789,596
S. sobrinus 661,538 699,976 726,574 750,250 806,908 895,655 691,838 786,421 844,923 820,197 878,699 899,104
S. sanguinis 530,248 594,529 638,470 651,256 652,013 819,170 504,070 633,840 691,386 651,957 709,502 720,986
S. salivarius 542,248 568,458 622,717 622,594 704,591 816,027 583,503 600,370 649,205 659,604 708,438 756,500
S. pasteuri 480,058 558,181 602,310 622,594 704,591 816,027 587,990 600,285 619,728 628,646 648,089 687,136
S. parasanguinis 536,446 5,707,749 629,047 630,151 667,066 757,201 550,919 605,175 636,416 640,084 671,325 736,586
S. oralis 474,413 568,393 652,822 634,822 704,656 762,701 530,628 543,113 591,199 604,967 653,053 706,844
S. mutans 487,655 546,186 620,196 603,589 658,292 703,153 457,503 467,810 509,795 538,970 580,955 678,787
S. moorei 567,414 624,352 644,285 655,223 660,830 787,577 566,710 577,428 638,138 642,531 703,241 727,137
S. mitis 479,870 570,950 608,519 613,243 623,248 858,306 574,245 607,696 630,267 632,519 655,090 699,222
S. constellatus 545,565 555,355 610,398 637,886 684,581 885,305 511,381 556,467 588,400 574,351 606,284 609,222
S. aureus 487,191 540,175 675,949 635,201 702,206 769,954 587,478 594,220 612,905 652,605 671,291 797,133
P. putida 516,300 619,464 650,428 647,966 698,450 786,884 558,804 586,594 633,324 624,951 671,681 674,352
P. nigrescens 501,925 574,848 610,700 608,865 637,100 707,094 587,177 632,085 655,643 640,732 664,291 664,466
P. micra 481,842 597,128 614,948 614,355 662,351 635,758 560,538 605,321 649,838 638,953 683,470 695,596
P. melaninogenica 581,484 642,451 656,114 658,453 679,316 748,853 525,768 573,214 651,422 659,362 737,570 808,836
P. intermedia 515,419 567,509 622,782 613,075 654,738 692,820 422,016 459,808 558,247 563,794 66,223 716,664
P. gingivalis 537,493 574,899 620,351 613,752 651,885 690,923 583,254 612,617 648,828 643,132 679,342 691,620
P. endodontalis 509,354 575,225 616,594 608,420 649,087 685,654 565,105 566,852 577,432 577,239 587,819 588,988
P. anaerobius 537,745 568,076 600,039 607,396 624,819 715,654 598,955 599,954 610,824 613,199 624,069 632,193
P. aeruginosa 481,647 582,853 640,709 624,453 681,893 751,444 565,730 591,237 599,990 606,724 615,477 661,188
M. salivarium 514,754 551,419 610,696 594,794 631,804 662,789 537,426 538,582 555,831 577,334 594,583 660,247
K. pneumoniae 478,531 542,816 599,017 589,771 634,740 681,970 511,323 573,528 616,948 618,669 662,088 729,458
F. nucleatum 390,358 509,930 539,019 552,677 624,528 662,581 629,171 632,180 655,032 657,829 680,680 692,081
E. faecalis 449,873 524,863 540,289 551,201 589,501 656,899 615,639 663,619 684,774 675,718 696,873 717,685
E. corrodens 392,714 578,014 610,590 580,026 627,132 684,806 567,392 586,274 666,448 662,937 743,111 751,458
C. rectus 423,191 526,447 663,110 615,102 676,448 752,398 612,597 633,473 640,603 647,565 654,695 696,458
C. gengivalis 474,206 591,170 650,446 641,002 674,923 787,770 608,877 628,253 668,521 667,024 707,292 722,178
B. fragilis 508,267 546,144 620,278 609,245 668,141 693,737 560,138 637,204 666,793 647,105 676,692 694,699
Aaa 476,387 569,010 612,387 615,976 632,509 521,162 521,162 571,564 633,465 622,224 685,226 698,605
C. coli 451,384 571,859 626,636 607,283 672,237 707,912 602,417 614,768 632,057 635,732 653,021 676,396
L. casei 565,001 581,528 646,157 638,162 683,994 724,165 479,441 588,346 646,438 624,235 682,327 724,623

Table 2.

CMX TB Group. Minimum (Min), 1st Quartile, median, mean, 3rd Quartile and maximum (Max) of the 40 target species detected in the screw threads and inside the implant.

Thermomechanical Loading Thermocycling
Min 1st Quartile Median Mean 3rd Quartile Max Min 1st Quartile Median Mean 3rd Quartile Max
Candida tropicalis 496,592 515,731 526,960 525,193 53,851º 548,276 489,379 506,751 512,887 516,540 522,676 551,008
Candida glabrata 518,446 527,305 534,480 538,439 542,217 582,655 501,586 508,209 515,254 527,091 534,136 576,270
Candida dubliniensis 477,982 517,257 529,519 525,692 545,424 565,209 470,631 490,024 512,224 506,412 528,612 530,569
Candida albicans 473,474 494,370 523,611 516,886 529,699 572,128 492,392 499,021 510,583 517,413 528,993 556,093
S. pneumoniae 482,061 508,639 522,327 518,340 537,917 544,420 487,890 500,679 533,283 531,922 564,526 573,230
S. gallolyticus 399,066 507,491 528,371 520,918 554,330 565,274 489,946 498,905 521,177 525,008 547,280 567,733
V. parvula 512,181 526,347 536,916 531,959 540,894 542,268 386,188 452,881 487,084 477,951 512,154 551,449
T. denticola 543,743 558,818 563,354 568,994 572,934 613,872 542,853 560,909 569,516 565,391 573,999 579,678
T. forsythia 532,057 543,820 560,373 561,235 580,801 585,616 507,034 530,541 550,539 552,844 572,841 603,264
S. sobrinus 519,783 537,888 549,026 551,081 557,541 610,955 569,753 573,052 577,485 580,099 584,533 595,673
S. sanguinis 473,787 514,390 533,482 531,100 554,510 580,375 329,607 416,505 477,452 468,591 529,538 589,852
S. salivarius 475,515 525,172 534,335 530,916 544,926 559,998 515,742 518,324 531,689 533,916 547,281 556,545
S. pasteuri 459,655 494,762 521,916 516,966 540,400 560,938 481,242 485,587 491,090 489,862 495,364 496,024
S. parasanguinis 551,532 555,873 560,776 562,206 564,969 583,635 522,089 535,622 548,198 544,030 556,606 557,635
S. oralis 547,741 547,741 557,186 566,023 570,717 583,620 561,110 569,979 578,776 580,457 588,353 604,966
S. mutans 521,082 545,371 571,449 563,677 582,176 597,851 548,784 551,513 561,157 565,602 575,245 591,308
S. moorei 506,457 554,874 565,164 560,009 573,283 599,603 544,476 549,398 560,877 564,643 576,123 592,343
S. mitis 526,259 533,981 548,766 555,798 574,910 595,837 100,000 426,065 535,121 428,344 537,400 543,136
S. constellatus 527,892 560,203 569,269 566,945 574,598 592,919 547,831 562,346 567,613 563,918 569,184 572,616
S. aureus 548,861 556,266 563,362 564,513 574,890 578,580 526,178 569,788 584,634 571,746 586,592 591,541
P. putida 500,590 541,112 549,882 547,336 560,674 585,879 503,974 527,182 537,623 537,638 548,080 571,334
P. nigrescens 532,600 545,662 557,655 564,862 588,724 594,985 555,658 556,225 561,188 566,100 566,562 568,365
P. micra 402,709 550,502 561,360 543,071 568,187 622,768 307,382 493,785 557,719 501,157 565,090 581,808
P. melaninogenica 495,919 555,366 562,177 563,158 575,509 613,968 534,323 539,015 545,649 549,336 555,970 571,724
P. intermedia 544,669 557,460 569,073 571,801 580,986 613,662 564,974 569,463 571,896 572,860 575,293 582,673
P. gingivalis 489,725 504,471 535,813 527,119 546,902 554,464 507,347 518,645 536,165 538,127 555,646 572,833
P. endodontalis 441,086 486,754 502,020 496,015 507,733 529,601 407,109 447,178 468,629 476,382 497,832 561,159
P. anaerobius 479,681 521,592 532,805 539,360 537,340 573,804 529,878 549,986 559,938 553,762 563,714 565,295
P. aeruginosa 503,678 522,435 562,092 553,281 578,722 601,961 556,387 557,108 557,552 563,401 563,845 582,113
M. salivarium 521,811 535,519 565,304 558,432 574,149 591,321 541,602 559,289 572,156 567,911 580,778 585,729
K. pneumoniae 542,472 568,314 577,548 581,477 595,568 617,113 559,294 566,629 570,637 578,279 582,288 612,548
F. nucleatum 560,132 564,347 570,906 575,682 581,220 619,010 543,114 547,686 557,899 559,287 569,501 578,237
E.faecalis 545,878 564,308 576,484 573,064 581,512 603,714 557,411 560,442 562,146 569,102 570,806 594,704
E. corrodens 552,590 568,619 579,075 578,317 587,834 608,508 567,342 567,979 578,663 578,561 589,245 589,577
C. rectus 532,558 561,741 575,519 577,864 593,144 615,889 544,577 565,388 572,980 569,702 577,294 588,274
C. gengivalis 537,625 545,711 556,653 559,280 571,189 583,272 521,654 542,848 556,176 553,238 566,565 578,945
B. fragilis 514,676 553,184 567,165 562,438 573,858 600,250 558,006 567,206 572,172 575,094 580,060 597,996
Aaa 520,565 531,841 549,008 548,850 565,558 580,608 534,334 535,150 540,761 547,236 552,847 573,088
C. coli 528,294 553,992 561,322 558,542 572,180 575,593 553,865 565,098 575,156 571,711 581,769 582,669
L. casei 531,608 573,140 583,355 580,824 595,654 604,658 551,711 557,724 57,660 576,619 596,555 599,446

Table 3.

CMX PU. Minimum (Min), 1st Quartile, median, mean, 3rd Quartile and maximum (Max) of the 40 target species detected in the screw threads and inside the implant.

Thermomechanical Loading Thermocycling
Min 1st Quartile Median Mean 3rd Quartile Max Min 1st Quartile Median Mean 3rd Quartile Max
Candida tropicalis 521,879 526,899 532,735 535,348 540,132 568,524 532,127 544,172 550,925 546,923 553,676 553,717
Candida glabrata 509,069 519,093 521,232 524,599 531,062 547,197 523,553 523,558 527,277 528,696 532,414 536,675
Candida dubliniensis 502,067 511,557 515,934 516,141 522,602 525,501 523,273 524,197 524,826 525,243 525,872 528,050
Candida albicans 505,054 517,696 520,209 519,744 524,708 529,092 518,324 519,122 521,380 521,729 523,987 525,834
S. pneumoniae 508,163 509,542 517,133 518,351 524,156 535,767 505,438 512,514 516,580 517,004 521,070 529,418
S. gallolyticus 508,370 511,941 512,435 514,700 515,767 524,863 512,751 517,757 520,574 519,627 522,444 524,608
V. parvula 498,994 505,425 510,424 509,845 514,491 519,270 509,489 511,837 512,774 515,817 516,755 528,232
T. denticola 492,806 510,774 518,132 517,028 525,095 540,757 509,681 510,765 526,990 524,016 530,242 532,403
T. forsythia 505,347 519,426 522,475 524,148 529,123 547,926 510,002 515,201 521,239 525,246 531,285 548,505
S. sobrinus 595,786 510,908 515,635 520,340 535,644 541,346 516,657 519,578 522,600 526,706 529,727 544,967
S. sanguinis 499,460 506,609 509,465 511,159 514,431 525,458 511,951 514,355 515,938 525,292 526,876 557,342
S. salivarius 499,330 507,500 512,509 511,075 515,363 519,720 506,010 507,446 500,883 508,136 509,200 509,516
S. pasteuri 502,444 507,500 512,509 511,075 515,363 519,720 506,276 513,591 516,103 519,186 521,698 538,260
S. parasanguinis 506,311 506,901 507,235 510,155 510,431 523,784 509,446 512,415 516,258 521,968 525,811 545,913
S. oralis 502,672 503,168 507,264 513,903 516,239 556,053 509,773 512,126 519,338 519,623 526,834 530,043
S. mutans 502,274 506,689 509,707 509,551 510,936 518,002 510,262 511,036 513,776 523,327 526,067 555,495
S. moorei 502,459 506,118 508,818 509,641 512,814 521,343 495,690 504,196 512,701 514,469 523,858 535,015
S. mitis 496,140 508,397 512,622 510,891 516,285 521,740 509,202 512,173 515,134 515,491 518,452 522,494
S. constellatus 499,229 504,608 513,249 510,944 515,374 520,901 502,799 507,690 510,825 517,339 520,474 544,905
S. aureus 502,340 506,297 513,276 512,750 516,756 524,366 503,241 510,870 515,086 518,742 522,958 541,558
P. putida 502,727 509,252 512,796 516,473 520,938 540,759 513,027 515,250 519,531 525,870 530,151 551,392
P. nigrescens 499,713 505,889 514,311 513,822 521,081 526,972 508,985 509,206 512,414 515,173 518,382 526,878
P. micra 499,866 509,486 514,798 513,336 518,662 519,904 495,886 505,933 514,731 514,545 523,343 532,833
P. melaninogenica 516,074 519,036 521,372 520,954 522,910 526,552 515,292 524,258 528,527 527,933 532,202 539,287
P. intermedia 492,805 510,600 512,890 512,164 518,208 520,554 502,698 512,800 516,485 522,552 525,937 553,340
P. gingivalis 496,318 510,253 513,687 514,056 519,108 525,049 506,885 508,754 511,323 521,321 523,890 555,753
P. endodontalis 500,108 507,253 510,450 510,585 513,594 522,991 510,414 512,129 514,838 518,472 521,181 533,797
P. anareobius 499,789 508,881 513,569 512,332 518,974 521,314 510,178 512,684 513,693 521,200 522,209 547,236
P. aeruginosa 502,333 504,190 506,289 508,465 512,226 517,909 499,685 504,556 515,162 514,296 524,903 527,176
M. salivarium 502,480 503,394 508,459 508,819 513,308 517,638 505,885 509,168 512,009 513,433 516,273 523,829
K. pneumoniae 503,118 507,107 509,697 510,426 514,686 517,074 512,896 515,614 516,578 517,487 518,450 523,895
F. nucleatum 496,246 509,891 513,442 512,987 517,171 529,364 506,459 506,717 511,210 512,268 516,762 520,195
E.faecalis 502,648 509,671 516,600 513,598 517,098 523,633 503,046 508,314 511,641 510,392 513,718 515,240
E. corrodens 499,102 507,130 511,786 510,290 514,304 517,051 502,761 507,881 511,606 513,627 517,352 528,535
C. rectus 503,240 504,524 508,209 509,771 513,324 521,964 503,162 506,076 508,482 511,234 513,640 524,809
C. gengivalis 496,277 509,774 508,597 511,429 518,305 525,247 500,159 502,528 510,465 512,300 520,237 528,113
B. fragilis 500,472 506,942 508,975 508,685 511,356 515,116 507,329 509,377 514,210 515,172 520,005 524,938
Aaa 500,329 504,265 510,794 510,960 513,583 530,871 503,189 506,050 510,544 512,296 516,790 524,905
C. coli 499,754 506,396 513,786 511,665 516,312 521,797 510,199 510,906 513,822 515,704 518,620 528,620
L. casei 496,075 507,173 509,809 510,831 515,268 523,264 502,363 508,030 511,699 513,208 516,876 527,070

Table 4.

CMX U. Minimum (Min), 1st Quartile, median, mean, 3rd Quartile and maximum (Max) of the 40 target species detected in the screw threads and inside the implant.

Thermomechanical Loading Thermocycling
Min 1st Quartile Median Mean 3rd Quartile Max Min 1st Quartile Median Mean 3rd Quartile Max
Candida tropicalis 217,282 341,234 385,222 378,850 439,730 465,562 219,254 254,462 352,510 348,994 447,041 471,700
Candida glabrata 225,313 246,065 262,678 268,364 290,845 327,597 184,674 227,776 250,716 242,263 265,203 282,946
Candida dubliniensis 285,913 327,206 331,453 348,002 345,835 478,154 327,498 385,702 411,369 434,964 460,630 589,619
Candida albicans 110,375 224,104 288,444 272,661 316,789 380,726 301,789 358,219 384,111 378,853 404,745 445,398
S. pneumoniae 109,486 143,622 259,004 233,199 287,371 383,126 100,000 212,150 365,828 359,290 512,968 605,506
S. gallolyticus 217,038 233,505 290,082 313,556 333,302 586,911 141,288 193,417 258,145 260,751 325,479 385,428
V. parvula 143,606 278,304 338,548 309,169 369,346 383,873 124,813 209,168 261,543 248,175 300,550 344,799
T. denticola 109,853 224,276 271,285 260,355 327,284 362,279 192,606 202,036 221,284 223,541 242,789 258,989
T. forsythia 116,516 228,361 263,827 262,679 296,038 402,735 193,887 202,409 235,870 239,400 272,860 291,973
S. sobrinus 110,479 228,074 277,931 275,089 336,756 397,246 262,909 288,476 299,820 301,256 312,601 342,476
S. sanguinis 186,712 260,753 319,200 311,340 372,454 413,536 158,952 265,727 369,944 424,695 439,865 439,895
S. salivarius 183,190 261,160 289,836 281,151 298,268 368,143 220,188 250,046 279,214 274,872 304,040 320,874
S. pasteuri 252,142 287,569 293,603 301,347 300,692 396,385 144,374 170,950 199,114 230,808 258,973 380,631
S. parasanguinis 112,858 210,692 301,458 281,694 341,119 399,906 243,447 275,141 303,708 295,559 324,126 331,372
S. oralis 280,561 351,924 391,391 390,849 409,087 528,500 297,603 305,743 328,975 360,780 384,012 487,569
S. mutans 227,850 290,089 313,220 311,207 376,317 407,205 188,905 277,723 322,566 301,035 345,877 370,103
S. moorei 109,937 189,142 243,573 228,104 268,104 306,521 223,630 258,245 289,429 283,920 315,104 333,192
S. mitis 150,640 185,939 215,018 243,150 313,548 376,590 154,386 206,231 262,503 252,076 308,348 328,913
S. constellatus 145,954 188,560 226,072 250,585 328,127 365,342 193,170 216,380 225,202 227,024 235,847 264,521
S. aureus 187,880 262,263 280,057 291,265 302,379 408,494 226,065 308,542 370,618 363,374 425,451 486,196
P. putida 143,161 253,023 322,618 309,755 368,265 455,233 297,895 306,702 363,186 366,827 423,311 443,041
P. nigrescens 177,730 207,023 266,496 277,380 353,889 397,399 321,529 362,934 386,017 442,321 465,404 675,723
P. micra 189,217 190,844 207,689 224,872 243,638 334,089 185,569 265,603 299,005 277,407 310,809 326,048
P. melaninogenica 448,694 514,857 561,123 591,295 652,611 880,154 566,416 582,489 605,760 632,014 655,285 750,119
P. intermedia 156,879 225,608 287,838 340,493 383,084 812,934 207,091 244,818 320,549 314,632 390,363 410,339
P. gingivalis 117,124 264,842 272,863 298,062 369,196 496,776 263,035 268,326 281,348 302,660 315,681 384,908
P. endodontalis 110,453 233,541 284,995 268,700 331,040 345,795 147,782 176,117 204,091 242,392 270,366 413,606
P. anareobius 151,960 225,042 265,177 263,778 293,364 405,937 146,384 230,859 280,924 279,409 329,475 409,404
P. aeruginosa 227,437 239,907 290,105 308,114 377,696 413,180 225,416 225,727 246,442 273,559 294,274 375,936
M. salivarium 187,273 247,973 341,173 333,144 415,076 469,885 309,088 333,366 364,032 365,248 395,914 423,843
K. pneumoniae 195,112 282,004 404,784 402,078 450,658 783,747 232,059 260,969 348,822 358,690 446,544 505,059
F. nucleatum 150,975 272,399 305,683 303,963 341,448 454,396 235,202 263,872 306,925 317,749 368,002 421,946
E.faecalis 186,020 274,720 341,316 325,884 396,734 420,810 309,552 331,993 360,781 353,452 382,240 382,694
E. corrodens 231,374 281,719 336,372 366,000 409,572 574,781 230,021 282,075 343,949 333,581 395,455 416,406
C. rectus 328,256 351,452 426,916 477,979 581,944 767,913 115,174 209,127 361,902 343,182 495,957 533,751
C. gengivalis 233,038 310,492 342,198 425,489 541,128 748,697 236,263 260,985 287,295 320,936 347,246 472,891
B. fragilis 277,918 292,194 355,0285 408,566 432,525 792,708 348,069 370,687 402,494 470,874 502,680 730,439
Aaa 110,516 268,966 287,284 296,592 338,523 427,716 148,299 178,126 229,103 244,087 295,064 369,845
C. coli 147,005 230,240 268,391 279,505 346,504 389,418 268,353 293,782 306,211 329,242 335,372 410,996
L. casei 147,514 282,125 345,747 319,614 377,600 387,103 147,246 233,982 322,463 322,463 346,930 595,550

The Generalized Estimation Equations (GEE) method showed that there were significant differences in the counts of the different target species of the study between the groups after the cyclic load test (p < 0.05). As shown in Table 1, the microorganisms with the highest counts found in the CMC TB group subjected to thermal cycling and cyclic loading were S. sobrinus (750,250), T. forsythia (746,543), T. denticola (660,446), P. melaninogenica (658,453), S. moorei (655,223) and S. sanguinis (651,256). Among the groups subjected to thermal cycling, the highest counts were for S. sobrinus (820,197), T. forsythia (723,360), E. faecalis (675,718), C. gingalis (667,024), E. corrodens (662,937) and melaninogeneca (659,362).

As displayed in Table 2, the microorganisms with the highest counts found in the CMX TB group subjected to thermal cycling and cyclic loading were K. pneumoniae (581,477), L. casei (580,824), E. corrodens (578,317), C. rectus (577,864), F. nucleatum (575,682) and E. faecalis (573,064). Among the groups subjected to thermal cycling, the highest counts were for S. oralis (580,457), S. sobrinus (580,099), E. corrodens (578,561), K. pneumoniae (578,279), L. casei (576,619) and B. fragilis (575,094).

As presented in Table 3, the microorganisms with the highest counts found in the CMX PU group subjected to thermal cycling and cyclic loading were C. tropicalis (535,348), C. Glabrata (524,599), T. forsythia (524,148), P. melanogenica (520,954), S. sobrinus (520,340) and C. albicans (519,744). Among the groups subjected to thermal cycling, the highest counts were for C. tropicalis (546,923), C. Glabrata (528,696), S. sobrinus (526,706), P. putida (525,870), T. forsythia (525,246) and C. dubliniensis (525,243).

As shown in Table 4, the microorganisms with the highest counts found in the CMX U group subjected to thermal cycling and cyclic loading were P. melaninogenica (591,295), C. rectus (477,979), C. gingivalis (425,489), B. fragilis (408,566), K. pneumoniae (402,078) and S. oralis (390,849). Among the groups subjected to thermal cycling, the microorganisms with the highest counts were P. melaninogenica (632,014), B. fragilis (470,874), P. nigrescens (442,321), Candida dubliniensis (434,964), Candida albicans (378,853) and P. putida (366,827)

Figure 10 and Figure 11 illustrate the distribution of bacterial species according to the Socransky red and orange complexes, respectively, in the investigated groups subjected or not to cyclic loading [13].

Figure 10.

Figure 10

Bacterial count (total genomes) after the thermomechanical loading assay.

Figure 11.

Figure 11

Bacterial count (total genomes) after the thermal cycling assay.

The results indicate that the amount of red complex bacterial genomes detected in the groups after the cyclic loading test was much higher than the amount observed in the groups subjected only to the thermocycling test. However, the distribution pattern of genomes in the groups is similar, with the highest values being observed for the CMC TB group and the lowest for the CMX U groups.

For microorganisms belonging to the orange complex, the number of genomes observed in the two experimental situations, with or without charge, was similar. However, the distribution profile between the groups was different in both situations; for the groups subjected to the cyclic load test, the pattern was similar to that of the red complex, with the highest counts observed for the CMC TB group, followed by CMX TB, CMX PU and CMX U. For the groups subjected only to the cyclic load test, thermocycling, the pattern was very different, with the CMX TB group presenting a much higher count of total genomes when compared to the other groups that were similar.

4. Discussion

The present study evaluated the microbial leakage through the implant–abutment interface in conical connection implants with different prosthetic abutment designs after thermal cycling associated or not with cyclic loading. To achieve this, the assemblies were subjected to a cyclic load test simulating human chewing and the Checkerboard DNA–DNA hybridization technique was used to identify and quantify the presence of up to 40 microbial species that commonly colonize the oral cavity, including bacteria and fungi that are associated with the inflammatory processes that may cause periodontal and peri-implant diseases.

Dental implant systems are conventionally used in two parts: the implant and the prosthetic component (abutment) that adapts to the implant and receives prosthetic rehabilitation. Studies point to the conical connection as having the best mechanical/biological performance when compared to others existing connection designs. The junction between these two pieces, even if very well adapted, results in spaces that can favor the colonization and multiplication of microorganisms present in the oral cavity [14,15,16]. The hypothesis tested in this study was confirmed since the results demonstrate that all types of abutments and implants investigated have not avoided the passage of microorganisms through the interface, even when not subjected to the cyclic load test. Despite advances with dental implants and their connections, the occurrence of microbial infiltration through this interface is expected, since the size of the spaces reported in the literature can vary between 0.1 and 10 µm and the average diameter of the smallest bacteria present in the oral cavity varies between 0.2 and 1.5 μm in width and 2 and 10 μm in length [15,16,17,18]. Additionally, the micro-movements that occur between the components favor the opening of existing spaces [19,20]. Therefore, the null hypothesis established for this study was not confirmed, since there were significant differences in the microbial profile for the different groups investigated.

Although Morse cone connections are considered the most stable and have the least infiltration potential between implant components, the presence of microorganisms colonizing the interior of implants has been frequently reported in the literature, even in experimental tests with the absence of load application [3,14,21,22]. The implant–abutment interface in this connection design has friction adjustment and when this assembly is subjected to load, the spaces present can also be enlarged as a result of micro-movements, resulting in the infiltration of microorganisms and their fluids into the implant and vice versa [2,23,24,25]. Furthermore, the imprecise machining of the internal parts of the implant and the prosthetic abutment does not allow a sufficient contact area between the surfaces to provide an effective seal and may contribute to the occurrence of micro-leakage [26,27].

Teixeira et al. [28] found a percentage of S. aureus infiltration in 77% of implants with morse cone connections and 100% in internal hexagon-type connections. The results described in the literature showed that the Morse cone-type connection, when compared to the internal hexagon, presented a greater sealing capacity; however, it was not able to prevent the passage of bacteria and fluids through the connection interface [28,29,30].

Studies in the literature have already demonstrated the presence of more than 700 different species of microorganisms colonizing the tissues of the oral cavity, including viruses, protozoa, fungi and bacteria that cohabit in homeostasis [31]. When the biological balance is disrupted, inflammatory processes can occur with the consequent development of oral diseases [32]. Socransky et al. classified the various microorganisms into distinct microbial complexes, namely purple, green, orange, yellow and red, associated according to the bacterial virulence for periodontal disease. The purple, green and yellow complexes showed strong associations with each other and were less associated with the red and orange complexes, which present the bacterial species most closely related to disease conditions [13,33,34].

All target species proposed to be investigated in this study were found inside the implants of the different groups studied, both in situations involving the application of the cyclic load and in groups subjected only to thermocycling. The species T. denticola, T. forshytia and P. gingivalis, which are part of the red complex, and the species S. constellatus, P. nigrescens, P. intermedia and C. rectus, from the orange complex, are directly related to periodontal and peri-implant disease and were detected in moderate quantities inside the implants. Microorganisms from the red complex are almost always found in the presence of the orange complex, as they precede colonization by species from the red complex [13].

Comparing the count of red and orange complex microorganisms inside the implants, the thermal group with the cyclic load presented the highest values of bacterial genomes. However, the distribution pattern of genomes in the groups is similar, with the highest values being observed for the CMC TB group and the lowest for the CMX U groups. The cyclic loading condition may have caused micro-movements of the components during mechanical loading which facilitated the microbial passage at the implant–prosthetic abutment interface into the implant, as demonstrated in other studies [16,26].

Despite the lower microbial count, the condition of the group without the load simulation did not prevent infiltration at the implant–prosthetic component interface and, consequently, colonization inside the implant. Among the abutments of the static group, the CMC TB group also presented the highest count of genomes of bacteria from the red group (T. denticola, T. forshytia and P. gingivalis), while for microorganisms belonging to the orange complex (S. constellatus, P. nigrescens, P. intermedia and C. rectus), the CMX TB group presented a higher total genome count than the other groups, which in turn had a similar count. Other studies also detected the presence of microorganisms, even in conditions without a load simulation [14,22].

In general, the prevalence of microbial species between the different abutments was different; the CMC TB group had the most prevalent species: S. sobrinus, T. forsythia, T. denticola, E. faecalis and C. gingivalis. In the CMX TB group, the most common species found were K. pneumoniae, L. casei, E. corrodens, S. oralis and S. sobrinus. In the CMX PU group, the most prevalent were C. tropicalis, C. Glabrata, T. forsythia, P. melanogenica and S. sobrinus. In the CMX U group, the species P. melaninogenica, C. rectus, C. gingivalis, B. fragilis and P. nigrescens prevailed. The amount of microorganisms between the groups also showed significant differences in the contamination values (p < 0.005), in addition to the aforementioned factors that lead to screw loosening which may have contributed in different ways between the groups to the microbial passage into the interior of the implants. Other factors such as the microorganism size, microgap size, surface topography, atomic interactions and surface free energy of the pillars can also justify the different quantities and species detected between the groups [15,16,17,18,35,36,37,38,39,40]. Works using similar methodologies to the present study have also demonstrated the passage of microorganisms from the external environment to the interior of implants [9,14,21,41,42].

Overall, periodontopathogenic species belonging to the genera Porphyromonas, Tannerella and Treponema were found at moderate levels in the thermal cycling and cyclic loading groups. The presence of these pathogenic species is threatening when a microbial imbalance occurs or the host presents susceptibility, as proposed by the “ecological plaque theory”, which presents biofilm-mediated diseases as a result of an imbalance in the host’s microbiota [43,44,45].

In addition to bacteria, the presence of some fungi was also found inside the implants. The literature shows that the species C. topicalis, C. albicans, C. glabata and C. dubliniensis, identified in the groups studied, play a fundamental role, as opportunists in the constitution of biofilm in association with bacteria, playing a relevant role in the pathogenesis of peri-implantitis [46,47]. The most prevalent fungal species in the group subjected only to thermal cycling was C. dubliniensis and in the thermal group with a cyclic load, C. glabata. The species of fungi investigated in this study belong to the same genus, Candida, and, therefore, have many similarities in the constitution of their genetic material, mainly regarding their size and diameter. The differences in prevalence found for these species in the different groups in our study, as well as the differences observed for bacteria belonging to the same genus, need to be better investigated in future studies. One possibility could be the differences in the electrostatic potential and atomic interactions that occur between different microorganisms and substrates.

It is important to highlight that detecting microorganisms inside implants is not the confirmation of peri-implant disease, but rather a situation that can substantially increase the risk, since several other factors are necessary for the onset of the disease, with its etiology being multifactorial [48,49,50].

The method used to investigate the presence of micro-leakage in this study was Checkerboard DNA–DNA Hybridization, which has been widely used to detect and quantify species that harbor different sites in the oral cavity [51,52]. As it is a method based on identifying the genetic material of target species, it allows detecting viable or non-viable species within a biofilm. The detection of non-viable species is a very important factor, since just the presence of the bacterial cellular structure and its degradation products already pose a risk to peri-implant structures, as they serve as a substrate for other bacteria [41,53]. This method’s main characteristic is the speed and simultaneous identification of several species of microorganisms. Despite the excellent results provided, this detection method also has limitations such as reduced sensitivity, since the presence of microorganisms in concentrations lower than 104 cells does not result in detectable or reproducible signals and only detects species that had the probes prepared from the DNA of the species defined as targets in the study [8]. Therefore, non-cultivable species or those that have not yet had their genome determined are not detected by this method. Furthermore, there is the possibility of the nonspecific binding of the probe labeling reagent with other macromolecules when the proportion of DNA is low [8]. Despite this, several studies have used this methodology to prove the micro-infiltration of microorganisms through the implant–prosthetic abutment interface [8,14,26,54].

The results of this study and many others, including literature reviews, demonstrate that despite presenting fewer occurrences of bacterial infiltration, conical connections are not capable of completely sealing the implant–abutment interface, making it vulnerable to the consequences of allowing a bacterial presence near this region. This finding leads us to question whether we should seek a different clinical approach, which seeks to learn how to deal with bacterial infiltration. In other words, we should seek a maintenance protocol that aims to control bacteria in the interface region. Sinjari et al., in 2018, published a study that provides important information about the implant–abutment interface. In the double-blind, controlled, randomized and prospective study Sinjari et al., with the objective of evaluating marginal bone loss, selected patients with prosthetic rehabilitation needs of a single element and separated the treatment times in five phases: t0—Implant placement surgery, t1—Reopening of the surgical room after 8 weeks, t2—Temporary placement after 12 weeks, t3—placement of final restoration after 14 weeks, t4—follow-up after 1 year. During the surgical procedure phases, however, one group (B) received cleaning of the interface region, carried out with gel 0.20% chlorhexidine, and the other group (A) received cleansing with placebo gel, without the inclusion of an antimicrobial agent. Bone loss analyses were performed during each phase of the study and the results demonstrate statistical differences in all surgical phases with greater bone loss for the group that received cleansing with the placebo gel. At t0, bone growth was observed in the test group and bone loss in the control group. In the subsequent periods, bone losses were observed for both groups, but always with statistical differences for lower loss in the test group [55,56,57,58,59].

Therefore, it can be understood that microbial infiltration through the implant–abutment interface is a problem still present in implant-supported rehabilitations, even when associated with implants with Morse cone connections, and this infiltration, if not minimized or controlled, can, in the long term, result in compromising the clinical success of the treatment if an imbalance of the associated oral microbiota occurs. More studies need to be conducted in order to clarify the relationship between the type of bacteria that develops and the clinical consequences, as well as studies that aim to develop interfaces that avoid, minimize or control the effects of the bacterial leakage.

5. Conclusions

Based on the results obtained in the present study, we can conclude that none of the implant–abutment combinations were able to prevent the microbial leakage through the interface. Mechanical cycling appears to play an important role in increasing the number of microbial counts. The design of the implant–abutment interface seems to be relevant to the type of microorganisms that penetrate and grow inside the implant.

Acknowledgments

The authors give thanks to Singular Implants (Natal, Brazil) for donating the implants and prosthetic components and Viviane de Cássia Oliveira (Dept. of Dental Materials and Prosthodontics, School of Dentistry of Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo) for technical support.

Author Contributions

Conceptualization, R.F.R., R.C.S.R. and C.d.N.; methodology, A.C.L.F., C.d.N., E.d.S.S., R.C.S.R. and R.F.R.; validation, V.B.d.M., L.d.O.T., A.A.S., A.C.L.F. and E.d.S.S.; formal analysis, E.d.S.S., A.C.L.F., C.d.N. and R.F.R.; investigation, V.B.d.M., L.d.O.T. and A.A.S.; resources, C.d.N., R.C.S.R. and R.F.R.; data curation, V.B.d.M., L.d.O.T., A.A.S., E.d.S.S. and A.C.L.F.; writing—original draft preparation, V.B.d.M., L.d.O.T. and E.d.S.S.; writing—review and editing, C.d.N., R.C.S.R. and R.F.R.; funding acquisition, R.F.R. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Institutional Review Board Statement

This study was conducted according to the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki and approved by the Institutional Review Board (or Ethics Committee) of the School of Dentistry of Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo (CAAE: 25836819.2.0000.5419 on 10 December 2019).

Informed Consent Statement

Not applicable.

Data Availability Statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding authors upon reasonable request.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest in relation to this study.

Funding Statement

This research was funded by Sao Paulo Research Foundation—FAPESP, grant number 2019/25405-0; R.F.R. received from National Council for Scientific and Technological Development—CNPq, a personal grant number 307944/2019-0; V.B.M. and A.A.S. received a Master and PhD scholarships, respectively, from Agency for the High-Standard Promotion of Graduate Courses—CAPES, which also support the Oral Rehabilitation Graduate Program—code 001.

Footnotes

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Associated Data

This section collects any data citations, data availability statements, or supplementary materials included in this article.

Data Availability Statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding authors upon reasonable request.


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