Effect of photobiomodulation on the stability and displacement of orthodontic mini-implants submitted to immediate and delayed loading: a clinical study

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of photobiomodulation (PBM) on the stability and displacement of orthodontic mini-implants (MIs) submitted to loading. Forty-eight and 35 mini-implants (1.5 × 8 × 1 mm) were assessed for stability and displacement, respectively (19 patients). MIs were allocated according to the intervention in 1—PBM + immediate loading (IL), 2—PBM + delayed loading (DL) (four weeks after implantation), 3—IL only, and 4—DL only. PBM (Therapy XT, DCM) was implemented using a red emission (660 nm, 4 J/cm², 0.1 W, 20 s) immediately after implantation (day 0) and infrared emissions (808 nm; 8 J/cm², 0.1 W, 40 s) in the following appointments every 48–72 h during two weeks (days 2, 4, 7, 9, 11, and 14). Loading of 150 gF was applied during three months for all MIs. The stability was assessed by resonance frequency analysis (Osstell ISQ), and images from Cone beam computed tomography were evaluated to determine the amount of the displacement of the MI’s head. MIs from the PBM groups presented lower loss of stability (P = 0.0372). When the analysis considered the loading protocol as an additional variable, group two showed the lowest loss of stability, being significantly different from groups that did not receive PBM (P = 0.0161). There was no difference between groups two and four during the period without loading (P > 0.05). DL groups presented lower loss when the effective period of loading was assessed, independently of the application of PBM (P < 0.0001). All groups showed displacement of the MIs head without significant differences (P > 0.05). DL potentiated the effect of PBM, decreasing the loss of stability.