The Effect of Antimicrobial Agents on Implant Surface Wettability Changes: An In-Vitro Study

Purpose: The goal of this in-vitro study was to determine the impact of the antimicrobial disinfecting agents chlorhexidine (Peridex) and an herbal extract (StellaLife) on the wettability of four implant surfaces: titanium machined (TM), titanium-SLA (SLA), titanium alloy (TA), and zirconia. Materials and Methods: Each implant surface in the form of a disk was disinfected with 0.12% chlorhexidine (Peridex, group 1), peppermint-flavoured herbal extract (StellaLife, group 2), and saline solution as the control liquid (group 3). Using a calibrated micro-syringe, 7.5 µl of each liquid were dispensed on the center of each disk (n = 180). Then, a goniometer was used to measure contact angles between the droplet and the disk surface to evaluate the wettability (hydrophilicity) of each implant surface. The mean from 20 contact angle measurements per liquid and implant surface was calculated. Comparative statistical analysis was performed with ANOVA and Bonferroni correction at the p < 0.05 level of significance. Results: The Bonferroni post-hoc comparison revealed a statistically significant difference with improved wettability for group 2 compared to groups 1 and 3 for rough-surfaced titanium-SLA implant surfaces. Conclusion: Overall, titanium implants may have improved hydrophilicity when rinsed with herbal extract antimicrobial agents compared to chlorhexidine.