Photobiomodulation as adjunctive therapy for guided bone regeneration. A microCT study in osteoporotic rat model

Regeneration of diseased bone is challenging. Guided bone regeneration (GBR) has been applied to favor the bone repair. Photobiomodulation (PBM) is also a recognized therapy able to improve bone repair in healthy and diseased individuals. Thus, with the hypothesis that PBM therapy could improve the GBR of diseased bone, this study evaluated the effect of PBM as adjunctive therapy to GBR in osteoporotic rats. Osteoporosis was induced in rats using the oophorectomy model. Then, 5-mm calvaria bone defects were created and treated according to the experimental groups, as follows: with no further treatment (Control); conventional GBR (Membrane), GBR and PBM applied with 3 s, 4 J/cm2 and 0.12 J per point (PBM-1) and GBR and PBM applied with 10s, 14 J/cm2, 0.4 J per point (PBM-2). PBM therapy (808 nm, 40 mW, 1.42 W/cm2) was applied immediately, 48 and 96 h postoperatively. Four and eight weeks later, the samples were harvested and processed for micro-computerized tomography (Micro CT). Data were statistically compared (p