A Comparative Study on the Effect of Peri-Implant Infection Management Lasers (1064-nm Q-Switch Nd:YAG, 1064-nm Nd:YAG and 980-nm Diode) on Titanium Grade 4 Surface

Over the past 10 years, the number of dental implants has grown significantly. This increase has consequently led to an elevation of the statistics related to cases of peri-implantitis. Laser therapy has conquered a place among the therapies of excellence to treat peri-implantitis. However, the laser device used could influence the therapy’s success. The aim of this comparative experimental work was to highlight the differences in the work on grade 4 titanium surfaces of the most commonly used laser lights in this field, taking into consideration any structural damage that lasers could cause to implant surfaces. The lasers examined were a 980 nm diode laser; a 1064 nm Nd:YAG laser; and a new generation of 1064 nm Nd:YAG Q-switch nano pulsed laser. We evaluated the titanium temperature increase, the pre- and post-treatment two-dimensional surface appearance observed under the scanning electron microscope; finally, the three-dimensional pre- and post-treatment topographic analysis was assessed using atomic force microscopy. We showed that the 1064-nm Q-switch Nd:YAG nanosecond pulsed laser appears to be more suitable for the preservation of implant morphology because of the absence of the induction of metal damage.