Background
Although several studies assessed the effect of bisphosphonate (BIS) administration on alveolar bone loss, this relationship using longitudinal analysis has not been fully investigated. The aim of the this article is to predict annual alveolar bone loss in a subpopulation of older adults patients who were taking oral bisphosphonate (BIS) adjusting for systemic diseases and associated risk factors.
Methods
This is a case-control study. We identified all subjects that reported receiving oral bisphosphonate from 2008 – 2015 (N=30) using the electronic health records of each patient to identify suitable radiographs for analysis. For longitudinal data analysis, 26 eligible subjects for inclusion to have at least two exposures of complete mouth set or repeated bitewing radiographs with at least one-year interval, then matched on age and sex to another 26 patients who did not report receiving bisphosphonate at any point of their life.
Results
Mild periodontitis was higher in the BIS group compared to the no BIS group; however, moderate periodontitis was higher in the no BIS group. For those who did not take oral BIS, change over time was not significant after the two-year period. However, BIS group had experienced 0.088 mm more bone loss compared to no BIS group (95% CI: 0.001, 0.176. P-value = 0.048), adjusting for all other variables included in the model.
Conclusion
The group who reported receiving oral bisphosphonates showed no improvement in maintaining alveolar bone level, and the use of oral BIS may not be effective in reducing annual alveolar bone loss, however, emerging evidence is promising for the use of bisphosphonate as an adjunctive local delivery medication for management of periodontal diseases.