Bisphosphonate: Brief Review of Its Development for Usage in Dentistry

Bisphosphonate (BP) is a class of drug that prevent the loss of bone mass. It inhibits the resorption of bone by encouraging osteoclast to undergo apoptosis. Considering that oral diseases and dental procedures may lead to teeth instability whereas alveolar bone is the main tooth supporting tissue, forceful indication of this drug is for preventing and minimizing bone resorption following oral surgery and relapse movement in orthodontic treatment. Clinical use of BP in dentistry is limited by risk of osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ) and of its systemic effects such as an increase of the bone mineral density in another bone area. Topical application with local effect would seem the choice of administration route for usage in dentistry. Until recently, no clinical usage of topical BP has been studied, however some experimental laboratory studies proved that this drug would be beneficial in a wide scope of dental treatments.