Impact of Zoledronic Acid and Denosumab Treatment on Growth Factor Concentration in Platelet Rich Fibrin of Patients With Osteolytic Bone Metastases

BACKGROUND/AIM: Side effects of zolendronic acid (ZA) and RANKL inhibitors (RANKL-I) include impaired wound healing and osteonecrosis of the jaw. Platelet rich fibrin (PRF) enhances wound healing and bone remodelling in vivo and in vitro. However, the topical use PRF in the surgical treatment of patients with medicament-related osteonecrosis of the jaw is relatively new and not thoroughly investigated. Furthermore, the potential attenuation of the PRF effect following antiresorptive treatment remains unclear. Therefore, we investigated the concentration of growth factors within the PRF in healthy volunteers and in patients with antiresorptive treatment.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: Blood samples from healthy volunteers and patients were used to produce PRF. The levels of EGF, VEGF, PDGF-BB, TGF-β1, BMP-2, and CD31 in the PRF was investigated by ELISA.

RESULTS: ZA treatment induced a significant decrease in EGF and TGF-β1 levels, whereas RANKL-I caused lower TGF-β1 levels.

CONCLUSION: Reduced EGF levels in PRF after ZA treatment may explain the delayed wound healing and question the positive effect of PRF in these patients. PRF use in patients undergoing RANKL-I treatment seems to be more justified.