Objective: In the last decade, dental implants have emerged as a crucial modality and serve as an individual form of therapy for dental failure. However, disparities in host responses have led to peri-implantitis and implant failure. The pathological mechanisms driving peri-implantitis remain largely unknown. In this study, we evaluated the role of oxidative stress and advanced glycation end products (AGEs) in the progression of peri-implantitis and dental implants failure, compared with chronic periodontal disease.

Subjects and Methods: Three patient groups (peri-implantitis, chronic periodontal disease and control), each with 10 subjects (7M/3F) and average age ranging from 40–60 years were selected for analysis. Salivary oxidative stress and tissue AGE levels were analysed by probing for reactive oxygen species (ROS) and Maillard reaction-related fluorescence, respectively.

Results: We observed significant increase (> 2-fold) in oxidative stress and AGE levels in patients with peri-implantitis and chronic periodontal disease compared to controls, with chronic periodontal disease having the highest levels. In addition, we observed a strong positive correlation (r = 0.94) between oxidative stress and AGE levels in the patients.

Conclusion: We propose that increased AGE levels and oxidative stress, although not the only pathway, are significant mediators in the pathogenesis of peri-implantitis. Altering them may potentially be used in combination with other modalities to manage peri-implantitis.