Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of e-PTFE titanium reinforced and Guidor membranes in the management of alveolar ridge deformities.
Materials and methods: Five beagle dogs were included in the study. Three through and through defects of the same size (12 x 5 x 5) were created in each animal, one on the right side and two defects 3-4 mm distant from each other on the left side. Guidor membrane was applied to the right defect, e-PTFE was applied to one of the left defects while the third defect served as control. Three, six and nine months following membrane placement, the dogs were euthanized and membranes with surrounding bone tissues harvested for histological analysis.
Results: Healing in each animal was uneventful with no clinical sign of inflammation. Histological evaluation indicated the defects covered with both membranes had significantly gained greater bone formation than the control defects. On the other hand, the control defects healed thin rim of bone mostly with a persistent central defect and suprabony connective tissue invasion.
Conclusions: There were no significant differences in the bone volume surrounding the membranes in the two experimental groups. Control defects produced significantly less amount of bone when compared the membrane sites.