A comparison between cutting torque and resonance frequency measurements of maxillary implants. A 20-month clinical study.

Oral implant treatment ad modum Brånemark was undertaken in nine patients with edentulous maxillae. Cutting torque measurements and resonance frequency analyses (RFA) were conducted at implant placement and the corresponding values were subjected to correlation analyses. The implants were also evaluated with RFA at abutment connection and at one-year follow-up in order to identify possible changes in implant stability. A total of 61 implants were inserted, of which 49 were of the Mk II self-tapping type. Two implants were lost during the study period. The cumulative torque was presented as a mean value for the upper/crestal, the middle and the lower/apical third of the implant site respectively, as well as an overall value for the whole site. The highest correlation (r = 0.84, P<0.05) was found when comparing the mean torque values of the upper/crestal portion with the resonance frequency values at implant placement. The Mk II implant sites were divided into three groups based on the values of the cutting torque, i.e. soft (group 1), medium (group 2) and dense bone (group 3). The mean value of each group was plotted against the corresponding mean value of resonance frequency measured at implant insertion. Statistical analysis showed significant differences in resonance frequency at implant insertion between groups 1 and 2 (P = 0.047) and between groups 1 and 3 (P = 0.002). When repeating the resonance frequency analyses at second stage surgery and at one-year follow-up, no significant differences were detected between any of the groups. It was shown that the stability of implants placed in softer bone seemed to "catch up" over time with more dense bone sites.