ABSTRACT Background The placement of ligatures in the cervical area of rat molars is considered as a predictable model to induce periodontitis. Objectives The present explorative study aimed to compare the efficacy of metal wires (MWs), without or with sandblasting, versus silk ligatures (SLs) in inducing periodontal bone loss in rats. Materials and Methods Twenty‐four Wistar rats were randomly divided into three groups of eight rats that received three different types of ligatures (MW, sandblasted wire [SMW], and SL) around their first right mandibular molar, while the contralateral tooth was left without the ligature and served as a control. Bone loss was assessed by measuring the distance from the cementoenamel junction (CEJ) to the bone crest at the distal aspect of the first molar on central mesiodistal sections generated from micro‐CT scans taken 24 and 35 days after ligature placement. Results In the SL group, only in two rats the ligatures were retained until the end of the 24‐day period; in all other animals, the ligatures were lost at some time point. In the SMW, the ligatures were retained only for the 24‐day period. In the MW group, no ligatures were lost. Irrespective of the group or experimental period, the difference in the crestal bone level between ligated and control teeth was in most cases z
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