Evaluation of an Arnica montana gel in the bone repair of rat jaws

Abstract

Bone repair is a natural process of the organism in which it seeks to replace lost bone tissue with one of the same or similar characteristics. The aim of this work was to study the effect of topical administration of Alendronate (AL) and Arnica montana (AM) gels on post-extraction socket repair.

AL and AM were used in the form of gels. Control (C) was carboxymethylcellulose gel. Its rheological and topographic characteristics were determined. The effect was analyzed in male Wistar rats weighing 90 ± 10 g, divided into 4 groups of 16 rats each. Animals were anesthetized and the lower first molar was extracted. Said alveoli were filled with the gels. The handling of the animals was carried out following the norms established by SECyT according to CICUAL. They were euthanized under general anesthesia. At 0, 7, 15, 30, and 45 days, 3D DICOM images of the mandibles (TC-CB Romexis – Planmeca) were taken to measure the volumetric radiographic density of the surgical site areas. Mandibles were resected, fixed in 10% formaldehyde; decalcified and then embedded in paraffin. Histological sections were made and stained with Hematoxylin/Eosin. Histomorphometric parameters were analyzed. Data comparison was performed by analysis of variance. Differences were considered significant if p<0.05.

The formulations presented a brown olive green color with different intensities; They presented a homogeneous appearance macroscopically, but heterogeneous microscopically. When evaluating the density data using ANOVA, significant differences were found between 30 and 45 days compared to 7 and 15 days. Regarding the group contrast, although the differences were not significant, it is worth mentioning that the AL group registered the highest mean values in all stages and that the AM groups presented similar responses, only after 30 days did they show an appreciable densitometric increase with respect to to the control group. The histomorphometric analysis did not show statistically significant differences.

The results show that LA administered locally would be an effective alternative for the maintenance of post-extraction bone mass.