초록
In order to improve the success rate of implants, various implant designs have been developed. Although there have been enough efforts to handle the surface of the implant with careful choice of material and mechanics so that the bone and the implant can be tightly joined together, they have still failed to play the role of periodontal ligaments of the natural teeth in the past. The role of periodontal ligaments is very important since it can improve the initial stability of implant by absorbing the impacts. The purpose of this study is, thus, to test the possibility of alleviating the impact when the surface of the implant was coated with chitosan, a natural polymer, and making sure that the coated material stayed on. Then, the condition of newly developed bone formation and the degree of inflammation in response was closely observed in the surface level. In the main experiment, Chitosan coated implant ($3.3mm{\times}7mm$) was implanted on both the right and the left side of rabbit's femur. The animals were each sacrificed on the $1^{st}$, $2^{nd}$, $3^{rd}$, $7^{th}$, $14^{th}$, $21^{st}$ and 28th day. The process was observed under an light microscope after the Toluidin Blue staining. From the experiment, it was found that the chitosan was evenly distributed on the surface of the screws, and the implant was adjoined with adjacent bone. There was a sign of inflammation on the $3^{rd}$ day, but on the $14^{th}$ day, the formation of woven bone and newly formed bones were noticed. Also, chitosan filled the gap was formed between the implant and the newly formed bone. The implant, the chitosan and the newly formed bone were forming one unit as a result. Therefore, it was found that chitosan coated implant could absorbe the impact in the initial stage of implant.
