An evaluation of the Periotest system. Part I: Examiner reliability and repeatability of readings. Dental Implant Clinical Group (Planning Committee).

The clinical success of endosseous dental implants is related to the extent of osseointegration. Many of the presently used methods of evaluating osseointegration are highly subjective. The Periotest is claimed to offer a more objective means to assess osseointegration and supporting bone stability of implants by means of microcomputer-controlled percussion. Investigators involved in a clinical study on dental implants being conducted by the Dental Implant Clinical Research Group participated in a two-part in vitro evaluation of the Periotest system. The first part, with which this article is concerned, involved each of 35 investigators taking three readings for each of 16 models designed to simulate an implant in place in the oral cavity and to cover most of the effective measuring range of the instrument. The Periotest system generally demonstrated a high degree of reliability and repeatability, with higher variability associated with specific model samples. Further evaluation of the Periotest as a research instrument will be conducted within the clinical environment of the Dental Implant Clinical Research Group study.