Selective Cyclooxygenase‐2 Inhibitor May Impair Bone Healing Around Titanium Implants in Rats

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of a selective cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitor, meloxicam, on bone healing around titanium implants in rats. Thirty-one adult male Wistar rats were included in this study, and one screw-shaped titanium implant was inserted in the tibiae of each rat. The animals were randomly assigned to one of the following groups for daily subcutaneous injections: control (N = 14): saline solution; and test (N = 17): 3 mg/kg of meloxicam, each administered daily for 60 days. After the treatment, animals were sacrificed, and undecalcified sections were obtained. Bone-to-implant contact (BIC) and bone area (BA) within the limits of implant threads and bone density (BD) in a 500 mum-wide zone lateral to the implants were obtained and arranged for cortical (zone A) and cancellous (zone B) bone regions. Intergroup comparisons demonstrated that meloxicam significantly reduced bone healing around implants. For zone A, significant differences were observed regarding BIC (47.01 +/- 10.48 A; 35.93 +/- 12.25 B), BA (86.42 +/- 3.66 A; 61.58 +/- 12.09 B), and BD (96.86 +/- 0.96 A; 91.06 +/- 3.05 B) for control and test groups, respectively (P <0.05). For zone B, data analysis also showed significant differences among groups for BIC (30.76 +/- 13.80 A; 16.86 +/- 11.48 B), BA (34.83 +/- 8.18 A; 25.66 +/- 9.16 B), and BD (15.76 +/- 7.05 A; 7.73 +/- 4.61 B) for control and test groups, respectively (P <0.05). Meloxicam may negatively influence bone healing in the cortical and cancellous bone around titanium implants inserted in rats after continuous administration.