title: Evaluation of a biodegradable synthetic hydrogel used as a guided bone regeneration membrane: an experimental study in dogs.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To test whether or not an experimental polyethylene glycol (PEG) membrane maintains the bone graft volume and contributes to the preservation of the ridge contour in comparison with a commercially available synthetic membrane.
  
  
  METHODS
  In 18 dogs, all mandibular premolars and the first molars were extracted. Ten weeks later, acute standardized defects were prepared. The defects of four dogs were randomly assigned to three modalities: (1) PEG plus deproteinized bovine bone mineral (DBBM) (PEG), (2) a resorbable glycolide trimethylene carbonate membrane plus DBBM (PGA-TMC), and (3) DBBM alone (DBBM). These dogs were then sacrificed for the baseline measurements. The remaining defects of 14 dogs were randomly assigned to (1) PEG plus DBBM, (2) PGA-TMC plus DBBM, (3) DBBM, and (4) empty defect. The dogs were sacrificed at baseline (n=4), 4 weeks (n=7), or at 16 weeks (n=7). Mixed model regressions and the non-parametric Brunner-Langer method were applied for statistical analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  At baseline, equal tissue augmentation was observed in all groups. At 4 and 16 weeks, the greatest augmented area fractions were calculated for PEG (103%; 107%, respectively), followed by PGA-TMC (98%; 91%), DBBM (85%; 78%), and empty (46%; 54%), being statistically significant different (P<0.001) between PEG and empty at 4 and 16 weeks, and PEG and DBBM at 16 weeks. The overall decrease (P≤0.01) in the amount of bone graft between baseline and 16 weeks was -14% (PEG), -22% (PGA-TMC), and -23% (DBBM).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The study demonstrates that the combination of the PEG membrane with DBBM maintains the bone graft volume over time better than controls. The PEG membrane with DBBM was also the most effective method to preserve the ridge contour.
authors.affiliation: Clinic of Fixed and Removable Prosthodontics and Dental Material Science, Center for Dental Medicine, Zurich, SwitzerlandInstitut Straumann AG, Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Daniel S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Thoma
authors.affiliation: Clinic of Fixed and Removable Prosthodontics and Dental Material Science, Center for Dental Medicine, Zurich, SwitzerlandInstitut Straumann AG, Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Michel M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Dard
authors.affiliation: Clinic of Fixed and Removable Prosthodontics and Dental Material Science, Center for Dental Medicine, Zurich, SwitzerlandInstitut Straumann AG, Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Gian-Andrea
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Hälg
authors.affiliation: Clinic of Fixed and Removable Prosthodontics and Dental Material Science, Center for Dental Medicine, Zurich, SwitzerlandInstitut Straumann AG, Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Christian F
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Ramel
authors.affiliation: Clinic of Fixed and Removable Prosthodontics and Dental Material Science, Center for Dental Medicine, Zurich, SwitzerlandInstitut Straumann AG, Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Christoph H F
authors.initials: CHF
authors.lastname: Hämmerle
authors.affiliation: Clinic of Fixed and Removable Prosthodontics and Dental Material Science, Center for Dental Medicine, Zurich, SwitzerlandInstitut Straumann AG, Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Ronald E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Jung
mesh_terms: D020341:Absorbable Implants; D000818:Animals; D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000494:pharmacology; D001861:Bone Regeneration; D018786:Bone Substitutes / Q000494:pharmacology*; D016025:Bone Transplantation / Q000379:methods; D002417:Cattle; D004285:Dogs; D005260:Female; D016557:Guided Tissue Regeneration, Periodontal / Q000379:methods*; D020136:Hydrogel, Polyethylene Glycol Dimethacrylate / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011108:Polymers / Q000494:pharmacology; D011897:Random Allocation; D012044:Regression Analysis; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D018786:Bone Substitutes; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D011108:Polymers; D020136:Hydrogel, Polyethylene Glycol Dimethacrylate; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols; C046409:polyglyconate