Success of non-surgical periodontal therapy in adult periodontitis patients: A retrospective analysis

Objective: To evaluate the results of active non-surgical treatment in patients diagnosed with adult periodontitis treated in a specialized clinic for periodontology.

Material & methods: In total, 1182 patients with adult periodontitis received active non-surgical therapy, which involved professional oral hygiene instruction, scaling and root planing, supragingival polishing and elective systemic antimicrobial medication. The results of this therapy were based on a full-mouth periodontal chart as assessed at the time of evaluation. Successful treatment as periodontal pocket depth (PPD) ≤5 mm was the main outcome parameter with bleeding on pocket probing as secondary outcome. Patient-related factors such as smoking and severity of periodontitis at baseline and site-related factors such as tooth type, furcation involvement and endodontic treatment were analysed. Possible relations with assessed parameters and the success of active periodontal therapy were evaluated.

Results: Overall 39% of the patients reached the successful treatment objective and a mean bleeding on pocket probing tendency of 14%. Treatment success appeared to be dependent on tooth type where the results at single-rooted front teeth (85%) and premolar teeth (78%) were more successful than at molar teeth (47%). Analysis revealed that in 55% of the cases furcation involvement at molars was associated with the absence of success. Endodontic treatment was associated with absence of success in 8%-11% of the cases. Smoking negatively influences successful treatment outcome (P < 0.001).

Conclusion: Active non-surgical periodontal therapy in patients with adult periodontitis resulted in approximately one third of the cases in the success endpoint of PPD ≤ 5mm. Sub-analysis showed that the outcome appeared to be dependent on tooth type, furcation involvement, severity of periodontal disease at intake and smoking status.