Connective Tissue Grafts Combined with Either Double Pedicle Grafts or Coronally Positioned Pedicle Grafts: Results of 266 Consecutively Treated Defects in 200 Patients

The purpose of this study was to evaluate two variations of the subepithelial graft. Two hundred consecutively treated patients received subepithelial grafts to obtain root coverage. One hundred patients were treated with connective tissue grafts combined with double pedicle grafts. The other one hundred patients were treated with connective tissue grafts combined with coronally positioned pedicle grafts. The mean root coverages were 97.6% and 96.1%, respectively. When the overlying pedicle was a double pedicle, there was a larger increase in the amount of keratinized tissue (3.0 mm versus 1.8 mm). When the preoperative recession depth was 5.0 mm or greater and a connective tissue graft was combined with a coronally positioned pedicle, there was less mean root coverage. The results of this study confirm that the subepithelial graft is an effective method to obtain root coverage. Additionally, the type of pedicle used to cover the connective tissue graft can affect the results.