Do Vibrational Forces Induce an Anabolic Effect in the Alveolar Bone of Animal Models? A Systematic Review

Mechanical vibrations have a biphasic effect depending on the context in which they are applied; their anabolic action has been used in medicine to increase bone density. In dental specialties such as orthodontics, their catabolic effect during mechanical compression has been widely studied, but the anabolic effect of vibrations is less investigated, so it is important to carry out research to clarify the effect of vibrations on the alveolar bone, explore a new approach to its use in orthodontics, and the increase of post-treatment bone density to prevent relapse. Hence, this work aims to systematically review the literature to evaluate the evidence regarding vibratory stimulation and its anabolic effects on alveolar bone in animal models. Methodology: A systematic review followed the PRISMA guidelines in PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases. With the PICO strategy, we formulate the subsequent research question: Does the application of vibrational force induce an anabolic effect in the alveolar bone of animal models? Due to the lack of human studies, the population of interest was animal models; only articles where mechanical vibrations were the intervention method and the alveolar bone density or osteogenesis were evaluated and included. The selected studies underwent quality and risk of bias assessment through ARRIVE and SYCRLE instruments, respectively. This protocol was registered in INPLASY, under ID number: 202280103. Results: All eight articles included in this work demonstrate that applying low and high frequency vibrations increases the osteogenic effect by increasing the density and volume of bone tissue and increasing the expression of osteogenic markers. The included studies present a medium quality and risk of bias. Conclusion: It is important to highlight that, regardless of the protocol used, low or high frequency vibrations increase bone density, particularly in the alveolar bone, since this is the bone of interest in orthodontics. These promising results set an important precedent for the design of experimental protocols but now in the context of post-orthodontic treatment in humans.