'Pre-prosthetic use of poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) membranes treated with oxygen plasma and TiO₂ nanocomposite particles for guided bone regeneration processes'

Objectives Guided bone regeneration (GBR) processes are frequently necessary to achieve appropriate substrates before the restoration of edentulous areas. This study aimed to evaluate the bone regeneration reliability of a new poly-lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) membrane after treatment with oxygen plasma (PO₂) and titanium dioxide (TiO₂) composite nanoparticles. Methods Circumferential bone defects (diameter: 10 mm; depth: 3 mm) were created on the parietal bones of eight experimentation rabbits and were randomly covered with control membranes (Group 1: PLGA) or experimental membranes (Group 2: PLGA/PO₂/TiO₂). The animals were euthanized two months afterwards, and a morphologic study was then performed under microscope using ROI (region of interest) colour analysis. Percentage of new bone formation, length of mineralised bone formed in the grown defects, concentration of osteoclasts, and intensity of osteosynthetic activity were assessed. Comparisons among the groups and with the original bone tissue were made using the Kruskal-Wallis test. The level of significance was set in advance at a = 0.05. Results The experimental group recorded higher values for new bone formation, mineralised bone length, and osteoclast concentration; this group also registered the highest osteosynthetic activity. Bone layers in advanced formation stages and low proportions of immature tissue were observed in the study group. Conclusions The functionalised membranes showed the best efficacy for bone regeneration. Clinical significance The addition of TiO₂ nanoparticles onto PLGA/PO₂ membranes for GBR processes may be a promising technique to restore bone dimensions and anatomic contours as a prerequisite to well-supported and natural-appearing prosthetic rehabilitations.