Evaluation of polycaprolactone scaffold for guided bone regeneration in maxillary and mandibular defects: A clinical study

OBJECTIVE: This study was carried out to assess bone regeneration following the use of polycaprolactone (PCL) scaffold in maxillary and mandibular osseous defects. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This prospective study included ten patients with maxillary or mandibular osseous defects present due to enucleation of periapical cysts or alveolar clefts requiring bone grafting and for lateral ridge augmentation that were treated with PCL scaffold. The patients were assessed clinically for pain, swelling, infection, and graft exposure at 1 week, 3(rd), and 5(th) month postoperatively and were also evaluated radiographically for bone fill using intraoral periapical and/or panoramic radiographs at 4(th), 6(th), and 9(th) month postoperatively. RESULTS: PCL scaffold was used in a total of six alveolar clefts and three cases of periapical cysts and one case of lateral ridge augmentation. Nine out of ten cases demonstrated wound dehiscence and scaffold exposure in the oral cavity. Radiographically, on comparison to the control regions, all these nine cases failed to demonstrate appreciable bone density gain. Only one case of radicular cyst in the mandible was recorded to have satisfactory healing. CONCLUSION: Although PCL scaffold has the potential for bone regeneration in osseous defects, the scaffold exhibited marked tendency for dehiscence in intraoral defects that significantly affected bone healing. A long-term study designed with a larger sample size and categorization of the defects is required to assess its efficacy in varied defects. Moreover, comparative evaluation of PCL and autogenous or alloplastic bone grafting material could provide assenting results.