A Comparative In Vitro Study on Heat Generation with Static Guided and Conventional Implant Bed Preparation Using Stainless Steel Twist Drills and a Standardized Bovine Model

The aim of this in vitro study was to evaluate the differences in heat generation across the drilling techniques, depths, and irrigation conditions of static computer-assisted implant surgery (S-CAIS) and conventional implant preparation (CIP) using a standardized bone model for comparative investigation. A total of 240 automated intermittent experimental procedures of 10 and 12 mm drilling depths were performed during S-CAIS and CIP using stainless steel twist drills of three drill diameters (2.2, 2.8, and 3.5 mm) and two irrigation modes (without/external cooling) at room temperature. Temperature changes were recorded in real time using multiple temperature sensors in two distances to the osteotomy site. For comparison, a linear mixed model was fitted. The level of statistical significance was set at α = 0.05. Comparing the two surgical techniques, significant temperature differences could be observed using 3.5 mm drills: CIP yielded statistically higher temperatures during 10 and 12 mm drilling without irrigation (<i>p</i> = 0.0115 and <i>p</i> = 0.0253, respectively), while statistically higher temperatures were observed with S-CAIS and external irrigation at a 12 mm drilling depth (<i>p</i> = 0.0101). This standardized in vitro investigation demonstrated the impact of surgical technique, drilling depth, and irrigation mode on heat generation, indicating differences especially in drills of larger diameter.