Dental Implant Healing in Patients Taking Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF)-Alpha Inhibitors
The goal of this pilot study is to learn about healing after dental implant placement in patients taking a class of biologic drug called Tumor Necrosis Factor or TNF-alpha antagonist or inhibitor. The main questions it aims to answer are: Do patients taking TNF-alpha inhibitors have any complications after the placement of dental implants? Do patients taking TNF-alpha inhibitor experience increased pain after dental implant placement compared to the expected levels when healing from this procedure? Researchers will recruit patients both taking these drugs and those not taking these drugs to compare the outcomes between the two groups. Participants missing teeth will be recruited to receive dental implants to meet ideal dental status and will be followed before and after the implant placement to determine levels of health and ensure proper healing. Participants will be followed for a total of one year and follow up visits will consist of both clinical examination and radiographs (x-rays) to evaluate bone level and implant status. Participants will also be asked to rate their pain during clinic visits and at home on a diary and record the amount of pain control medication they take after the implant procedure.
• Over the age of 18
• Require placement of implants to assist with dental restoration.
• Half of the patients (15) will be recruited with the key criteria of a TNF-alpha inhibitor medication that they have been taking consistently without dose adjustment or other changes for at least 6 months. The other half will be recruited without a target medical condition but will be recruited to match the patients taking TNF-alpha inhibitors in age and gender.
• All patients will be medically fit to withstand implant placement as judged by best practice applied by the study team.
• The patients will be required to read and speak English
• All patients must either provide their own independent consent for medical procedures or to attend study visits with a surrogate decision maker.