Effect of Age on Bleeding on Probing (BOP) as an Indicator of Periodontal Inflammation in Patients Enrolled in Supportive Periodontal Therapy

Purpose: To assess the effect of age on the mean percentage of bleeding on probing (BOP) during supportive periodontal therapy (SPT) in patients enrolled in SPT for at least 5 years.
Materials and Methods: This study was performed as a retrospective analysis of data collected from SPT patients initially diagnosed with gingivitis or mild to severe periodontitis. Two groups of patients were selected: in group A, younger adults (age ≤ 35 years) were included while group B consisted of older SPT patients (age ≥ 65 years). BOP in the two groups was compared according to both disease severity and % compliance with SPT visits.
Results: BOP in all patients (n = 236) was 19.2% (± 12.4). Group A (n = 110) presented mean BOP levels of 19.7% (± 11.8), while lower BOP levels of 18.7% (± 13.0) were found in group B (n = 126; p = 0.5272). Older patients demonstrating high % compliance had lower mean BOP levels (14.2% ± 9.5) than younger patients (18.0% ± 11.7; p = 0.0841). Similarly, BOP was lower in older patients with moderate (group B: 18.4% ± 12.1, group A: 19.3% ± 14.6, p = 0.0541) or severe periodontitis (group B: 22.4% ± 11.4, group A: 23.2% ± 14.0; p = 0.3440). In patients with moderate or severe periodontitis and higher % compliance with SPT, the mean BOP was statistically significantly lower in older patients than in younger patients (moderate: 14.4% ± 11.9 vs 19.4% ± 15.1, p 0.0001; severe: 13.2% ± 11.1 vs 18.3% ± 17.5, p = 0.0170).
Conclusion: Older patients enrolled in SPT may present lower levels of BOP. This finding should be considered when determining SPT intervals with elderly patients. Keywords: bleeding on probing, elderly, compliance, supportive periodontal therapy