Assessment of Two Soft Tissue Augmentation Using Acellular Dermis Around Dental Implants

June 22, 2026 updated by: Maria L. Geisinger, DDS, MS, University of Alabama at Birmingham

Assessment of Two Soft Tissue Augmentation Protocols Using Acellular Dermis for Augmentation of Soft Tissue Quantity and Quality Around Dental Implants

This study aims to compare soft tissue grafting with acellular dermis at Phase I or Phase II dental implant surgery.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

This proposed study would allow us to assess the use of two different timing protocols for soft tissue augmentation in real-world scenarios to improve clinicians' understanding of optimal protocols for soft tissue grafting and their impact on surgical outcomes, patient-reported outcomes, and long-term implant health.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
40

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.
  • Name: Sarah Startley, DMD
  • Phone Number: 205-975-8711
  • Email: ss1971@uab.edu

Study Contact Backup

  • Name: Maria Geisinger, DDS, MS
  • Phone Number: 205-934-4984
  • Email: miagdds@uab.edu

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Alabama
      • Birmingham, Alabama, United States, 35294-0007
        • University of Alabama at Birmingham
        • Contact:
          • Sarah Startley, DMD
          • Phone Number: 205-975-8711
          • Email: ss1971@uab.edu
        • Contact:
          • Maria Geisinger, DDS, MS
          • Phone Number: 205-934-4984
          • Email: miagdds@uab.edu
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Maria L Geisinger, DDS, MS

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • English speaking
  • At least 18 years old
  • Must be a patient of the UAB Dental School
  • Able to read and understand informed consent document
  • Patients presenting with a single edentulous site planned for dental implant placement deemed deficient in soft tissue peri-implant phenotype (> 2mm width of keratinized tissue, < 1mm marginal soft tissue thickness, and/or > 2mm vertical soft tissue height)
  • Presence of periodontally healthy, non-carious neighboring teeth and/or healthy restored dental implants on either side of edentulous site planned for dental implant placement.
  • No anticipated need for surgical and/or endodontic care at teeth adjacent to the proposed surgical site during the study period.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Non-English speaking
  • Less than 18 years old
  • Smokers/tobacco users (>10 cigarettes/day)
  • Patients with systemic pathologies or conditions contraindicating oral surgical procedures or adversely affecting wound healing
  • Edentulous sites treatment planned for dental implant placement with adequate implant site soft tissue quality/quantity (> 2mm width of keratinized tissue, > 1mm marginal soft tissue thickness, and/or > 2mm vertical soft tissue height).
  • Absence of adjacent teeth/implants on either side of the tooth to be extracted and/or edentulous sites where 2 or more adjacent implants are planned.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Active Comparator: Phase I dental implant placement with acellular dermis
After dental implant placement, soft tissue augmentation using acellular dermis will be performed
Procedure: Phase I dental implant placement with acellular dermis
After dental implant placement, soft tissue augmentation using acellular dermis will be performed
Experimental: Phase II dental implant uncovery with acellular dermis
Dental implant uncovery, soft tissue augmentation using acellular dermis will be performed
Procedure: Phase II dental implant uncovery with acellular dermis
Dental implant uncovery, soft tissue augmentation using acellular dermis will be performed

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Width of buccal keratinized tissue at dental implant sites
Time Frame: From baseline to 6 months
Width of buccal keratinized tissue at dental implant sites as measured with a calibrated UNC-15 periodontal probe from the gingival margin to the mucogingival junction.
From baseline to 6 months
Thickness of buccal keratinized tissue 2mm from the gingival margin of the dental implant sites
Time Frame: From baseline to 6 months
Thickness of buccal keratinized tissue 2mm from the gingival margin as measured with an endodontic reamer with a stopper
From baseline to 6 months
Vertical height of peri-implant soft tissues
Time Frame: From Baseline to 6 months
Vertical height of peri-implant soft tissues as measured with an endodontic reamer and stopper after local anesthesia delivery and calibrated periodontal probe from gingival margin to the alveolar crest at the implant sulcus in a parallel manner.
From Baseline to 6 months
Radiographic marginal bone loss
Time Frame: From baseline to 6 months
Radiographic marginal bone loss as measured using digital tool and calibrated parallel radiographic images
From baseline to 6 months
Patient centered outcomes using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS)
Time Frame: 4 weeks
Patient centered outcomes including pain, bleeding, swelling, change in daily activities using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS). This measurement ranges from 0-10 (0 being better and 10 being worse)
4 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
University of Alabama at Birmingham

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Maria L Geisinger, DDS, MS, University of Alabama at Birmingham

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Estimated)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
August 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
December 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
December 1, 2028

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
March 30, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
March 30, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
April 6, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
June 25, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
June 22, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
June 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • IRB-300016380
  • UAB Periodontology (Other Identifier: University of Alabama at Birmingham)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

Data from this study will not be shared with other researchers outside of our research team.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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