Background: Treatment of furcation involvement of molars with periodontal disease remains challenging and unpredictable. Platelet-rich fibrin (PRF) has received the attention of researchers due to its pleiotropic properties essential for periodontal wound healing. The osteoinductive property of demineralized freeze-dried bone allograft (DFDBA) has been successfully used in periodontal regeneration. Aim: The present study aimed to explore the effectiveness of PRF alone and with DFDBA in the treatment of mandibular degree II furcation defects in subjects with chronic periodontitis. Material and Methods: Patients treated were from the Department of Periodontology and Implantology, Institute of Dental Sciences, Bareilly. A total of 60 mandibular molars were treated with either open flap debridement (OFD) alone, [Formula: see text] combination or [Formula: see text] combination. The soft and hard tissue parameters such as vertical probing depth (VPD), vertical clinical attachment level (VCAL), gingival marginal level (GML), horizontal probing depth (HPD), vertical bone fill (VBF), horizontal bone fill (HBF) and furcation width (FW) were determined at baseline and 9 months postoperatively. A paired [Formula: see text]-test was conducted to assess the statistical significance between time period within each group for clinical and radiographic parameters. ANOVA and post-hoc Tukey's tests were also conducted for intergroup comparison of soft and hard tissue parameters. Statistical significance was set at [Formula: see text]. Results and Discussion: After 9 months, all treatment groups showed significant ([Formula: see text]) improvement in soft and hard tissue parameters, except GML in all the three groups and HBF and FW in the OFD group as compared to baseline. The mean VBF change was highest in the [Formula: see text] group ([Formula: see text]) mm, followed by that in the [Formula: see text] and OFD groups ([Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]mm, respectively). Conclusions: It was shown that both [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] combinations were significantly advantageous for the management of mandibular degree II furcation defects. However, the [Formula: see text] combination has significantly greater benefits than [Formula: see text] combination in terms of VBF.
Keywords: Bone graft; chronic periodontitis; flap surgery; furcation defects.