Page 404 - Advances in Biomechanics and Tissue Regeneration

20.5 CONCLUSIONS 401

FIG. 20.10 FEM solution using model 2: final isomaps of (A) apparent density, ρ; (B) von Mises effective stress, σ; and principal stresses (C) σ 11
and (D) σ 22 .

FIG. 20.11 NNRPIM solution using model 2: final isomaps of (A) apparent density, ρ; (B) von Mises effective stress, σ; and principal stresses
(C) σ 11 and (D) σ 22 .

and well-defined horizontal trabeculae. However, NNRPIM’s solution, due to its meshless formulation, produces
smoother results when compared with FEM.
Once again an intersection of the bone apparent density distribution map of both numerical solutions was con-
structed. As presented in Fig. 20.12, solutions are coherent with each other preserving the main trabecular structures
of the mandibular bone.

20.5 CONCLUSIONS

Studying and predicting bone remodeling of the mandible, after insertion of a dental implant, are an important
approach to extend our knowledge about implant’s characteristics and develop strategies to increase its integration
rate. The survival and effectiveness of the implant were studied in this work through an adaptive bone remodeling
algorithm, which includes a phenomenological law capable of correlating the apparent density of bone tissue with its
mechanical properties. This algorithm was combined with two different numerical techniques (i.e., FEM and
NNRPIM). For both methods the algorithm was able to accurately predict the main trabecular structures of the man-
dible. However, due to its meshless formulation, NNRPIM’s stress maps were more accurate, leading to smoother
trabecular distributions when compared with FEM.

II. MECHANOBIOLOGY AND TISSUE REGENERATION