Quintessence International, 04/2022

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the clinical effects of concentrated growth factor (CGF) in combination with coronally advanced flap (CAF) compared with platelet rich fibrin (PRF)+CAF for the treatment of multiple adjacent gingival recessions (GRs). Method and materials: 18 subjects with total of 76 Type I GRs in the maxilla were included. Recessions were randomly treated according to a split-mouth design by means of CGF+CAF (39 defects, CGF side), or PRF+CAF (37 defects, PRF side). Clinical outcomes were evaluated at 6 months. Results: The mean root coverage was 86.32% and 80.86%, and complete root coverage was 61.53% (24/39) and 51.35% (19/37) for CGF side and PRF side, respectively, at 6 months. Statistically significant gains were observed in the terms of clinical attachment level, recession depth, keratinized gingiva width, gingival thickness, and recession width in the both sides at 6 months compared to baseline values; no statistically significant difference was observed in these parameters between the two sides at 6 months. Conclusions: According to results, the use of CGF+CAF was not superior to PRF+CAF in providing additional benefits in clinical parameters. Keratinized gingiva width and gingival thickness significantly increased with the use of CGF and PRF membranes together with CAF. Keywords: concentrated growth factor, gingival recession, plastic surgery, platelet-rich fibrin, root coverage

Objective: To evaluate the integrated efficacy of completely simultaneous ultrasonic scaling and subgingival irrigation with chlorhexidine in chronic periodontitis. Method and materials: This was a split-mouth randomized controlled trial including 19 patients with moderate to severe chronic periodontitis. After calculus removal, the test side received simultaneous ultrasonic scaling and subgingival irrigation with 0.12% chlorhexidine, and the control side received simultaneous ultrasonic scaling and subgingival irrigation with distilled water. A newly designed ultrasonic scaler tip with a liquid outlet on the terminal was used. Clinical parameters were assessed, and gingival crevicular fluid was collected before treatment at baseline and 1.5, 3, and 6 months after baseline. Results: On follow-up, both sides showed significant reductions in clinical parameters and concentration of inflammatory mediators in gingival crevicular fluid. Adjunct application of CHX resulted in an additional periodontal pocket reduction (0.27 to 0.29 mm, P < .05) compared to the control side, in sites with initial probing depth of 4 to 5 mm. Within the initial probing depth ≥ 6 mm, the additional probing depth reduction was 0.44 to 0.60 mm (P < .05), with clinical attachment loss, concentration of interleukin-6, and concentration of matrix metalloproteinase-8 being 0.32 to 0.38 mm, 2.64 to 3.40 µg/L, and 19.78 to 22.39 ng/L, respectively (all P < .05). Conclusion: In this study, treatment outcomes of chronic periodontitis could be improved by treating the root surface with simultaneous ultrasonic scaling and chlorhexidine irrigation. The adjunctive use of 0.12% chlorhexidine with a newly designed ultrasonic scaler tip in the treatment of moderate to severe chronic periodontitis demonstrated significant clinical benefits and decrease in inflammatory mediator when compared with scaling and root planing plus placebo. Keywords: chlorhexidine, inflammatory mediator, periodontitis, scaling and root planing, subgingival irrigation

Objectives: To analyze the relationships between the dimension of clinical gingival recession and of the actual bone dehiscence. Method and materials: Data included measurements taken before and during root coverage surgical procedures. General health, smoking status, previous orthodontic treatment, probing depth, clinical measurements taken on gingival recessions, and the exposed alveolar bone dehiscences were recorded. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and linear regression model. Results: Twenty-three patient files were available. The mean age was 31.3 ± 12.1 years (range 13 to 51 years). Eight patients had previous orthodontic treatment. Incisor, canine, and premolar recessions amounted to 9, 8, and 6 teeth, respectively. The deepest recession per patient was recorded. The mean alveolar bone dehiscence depth was 6.78 ± 1.2 mm (range 5 to 9 mm). Patient-related or systemic findings, preceding orthodontic treatment, and tooth type were not correlated with alveolar bone dehiscence dimensions. A significant association was found between clinical recession and the alveolar bone dehiscence depths (P < .001, Fisher exact test). On average, each 1 mm increase in clinical recession depth involved an increase of 1.45 mm in alveolar bone dehiscence depth (P < .001, linear regression). The ratio between the clinical recession depth and width was significantly associated with the depth of the bone dehiscence (P = .007, Fisher exact test). Conclusion: Within the limitations of the size of this study, clinical recession depth and width dimensions may help to predict the underling bone dehiscence magnitude. Gingival recession is associated with deformities of the underlying alveolar bone; this may be revealed during mucogingival procedures associated with full-thickness flaps. The association between the two may be of particular value to the operator as it may significantly affect the outcome of treatment. Furthermore, this relationship is of utmost importance in minimally invasive procedures that avoid flap elevation. A significant association was found between the depth of the clinical gingival recession and that of alveolar bone dehiscence. In addition, the ratio between the clinical recession depth and width was significantly associated with the depth of the bone dehiscence. Clinical recession depth and width dimensions may serve as an assessment predictor for the underling bone dehiscence magnitude. Keywords: alveolar bone dehiscence, clinical gingival recession, gingival recession cover

Bacterial biofilm in the oral cavity and around dental implants may trigger an inflammatory response of the peri-implant soft tissue. Emerging antimicrobial products have been developed to combat peri-implant soft tissue pathology; however, limited evidence is available evaluating their effectiveness. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first documented case report in the literature assessing the effect of Cervitec Plus around dental implants. This case report provides an example of a patient presenting to a periodontal specialty clinic with peri-implant pathology and subsequently treated with antimicrobial varnish following dental hygiene peri-implant therapy. The report serves to evaluate the efficacy of peri-implant soft tissue pathology utilizing antimicrobial varnish as measured by percent of bleeding upon probing, presence of suppuration, and changes in implant probing depths. Understanding the impact of bacterial plaque on peri-implant soft tissue and the effectiveness of antimicrobial products in conjunction with dental hygiene peri-implant therapy may provide patients with optimal peri-implant health and long-term success of dental implants. Keywords: antibacterial agents, biofilms, case report, dental implants, inflammation, maintenance

Objective: The study aimed to evaluate the influence of ocular dominance, clinical experience, and sex on the accuracy of visual color matching. Method and materials: A total of 104 selected participants consisting of dental students and dental practitioners were allocated into two groups based on their clinical experience of using visual shade matching tabs for the selection of tooth shade. Both the inexperienced (IXP), as well as experienced participants (EXP), were then asked to correctly match the shades of five tabs (A2, A3.5, B1, C2, and D3) of a commonly used visual shade guide (Vitapan Classical shade guide, VITA Zahnfabrik) that were kept constant throughout the study. The participants documented the shade of those tabs using another set of shade guide using the right eye (left eye covered), left eye (right eye covered), as well as both eyes. Test for ocular dominance was performed using the Dolman method. The results were statistically analyzed using the chi-square test with a level of significance set at < .05. Results: The percentage of correct shade matching with the monocular dominant vision (53%) was significantly better as compared to the monocular non-dominant vision (12%) (P < .001) or binocular vision (44%) (P < .05). Sex had an influence in shade selection (P = .031). However, clinical experience was an insignificant aspect in shade matching (P = .078). Conclusions: Knowing the clinician’s dominant eye can be clinically relevant, as it can influence the accuracy of shade selection, irrespective of sex and clinical experience. Keywords: binocular vision, clinical experience, monocular vision, ocular dominance, visual shade match

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of platelet-rich fibrin (PRF), concentrated growth factors (CGF), and autologous fibrin glue (AFG) application on early wound healing after gingivectomy and gingivoplasty operations. Method and materials: In this split-mouth study, gingivectomy and gingivoplasty surgery were performed on 19 patients. The postoperative PRF, CGF, and AFG applied areas were compared with the control regions. On days 0, 7, 14, and 28, the surgical area was stained with a plaque-disclosing agent and evaluated in the ImageJ program. Wound healing was evaluated with H2O2 test, visual analog scale for pain, and Landry, Turnbull, and Howley (LTH) wound healing index on days 7, 14, and 28. The patients were asked to evaluate their esthetic perceptions on a visual analog scale. Results: The amount of staining at days 7 and 14 was found to be significantly higher in the control group than in the test groups, but there was no difference between the test groups. LTH index values of the control group at days 7, 14, and 28 were found to be significantly lower than the test groups. There was no significant difference between the groups in the epithelialization assessment performed with the H2O2 test. It was observed that the use of platelet concentrate at day 7 reduced postoperative early pain. Patients were highly satisfied with postoperative esthetics. Conclusion: After gingivectomy and gingivoplasty operations, PRF, CGF, and AFG application were found to have positive effects on wound healing. However, PRF, CGF, and AFG applications were not superior to each other in terms of secondary wound healing. Keywords: autologous fibrin glue, concentrated growth factor, gingivectomy, gingivoplasty, platelet-rich fibrin

Objective: Bacteria entering the bloodstream through oral mucosa cause bacteremia, which can lead to septic or distant infections. The underlying factors and need for dental treatment in patients referred for oral examination because of septic infection were investigated. It was expected that general diseases and poor socioeconomic status of patients would increase the risk of bacteremia. Method and materials: This descriptive retrospective study included patients (N = 128) referred from medical clinics of the Helsinki University Hospital (HUH), during 2012 to 2017, to the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Diseases due to bacteremia suspected to be of oral origin. Data were extracted from medical and dental records according to the World Health Organization International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) for systemic or remote infections. Different groups were formed using modified Skapinakis classification for socioeconomic status (SES), from I (high) to V (low). Underlying medical conditions were retrieved according to McCabe classification: healthy, nonfatal, ultimately fatal, and rapidly fatal diseases. The data were analyzed using the statistical software package SPSS (IBM). Results: Patients were referred most often from the Departments of Infectious Diseases and Internal Medicine. Because of infection, 12 patients needed aortic or mitral valve operations. Many of the patients were intravenous drug users. However, the majority of patients presented McCabe class I, indicating no systemic disease. The main SES was intermediate III. Tooth extraction was the principal mode of treatment. No demographic background variables were identified to explain increase of the risk for bacteremia except that most patients were men with untreated dental problems. Conclusions: Contrary to the authors’ expectation, poor SES and underlying diseases did not seem to link to the outcome. However, untreated dental infections present an evident risk for life-threatening septic complications also in generally healthy individuals. Keywords: bacteremia, dental health, distant site infection, endocarditis, metastatic infection, oral health, septicemia

Point-of-care-ultrasound (PoCUS) is performed by the clinician at the patient’s bedside and is an essential diagnostic tool in many medical subspecialties, in hospital-based care, emergencies, trauma, and in general practice. A simple, novel approach for implementation of PoCUS of the oral cavity and maxillofacial complex is introduced. Relevant indications include differentiating abscess from cellulitis, detecting jaw and facial fractures, assessment of surgical complications, removing foreign bodies, and evaluating soft tissue masses. Intraoral and transcutaneous approaches may be used alone or in combination. This pilot series shows the capability of PoCUS to improve diagnostic accuracy, speed diagnosis, guide procedures, and improve management. Prospective studies are underway to determine the strengths and weaknesses of the method and its impact on patient outcomes. Keywords: diagnostic imaging, maxillofacial injuries, oral, pathology, point-of-care testing, ultrasonography

Objective: To evaluate and summarize clinical practice guidelines on the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of dental diseases during pregnancy, and to provide summary recommendations for general dental practitioners involved in the dental care of pregnant women. Method and materials: Using keywords related to prenatal dental care in combination with guidelines or consensus statements, online databases, websites of professional organizations, and evidence-based practice platforms were searched. Published guidelines or consensus statements that met the inclusion criteria were selected and evaluated with the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research & Evaluation Instrument II (AGREE-II) tool. Key recommendations were summarized and assessed for consistency across the guidelines. Results: A total of 15 guidelines or consensus statement documents for oral health care during pregnancy were found after the initial search, of which 7 documents met the inclusion criteria; these were analyzed with AGREE-II. These guidelines were developed by expert panels and consensus meetings after comprehensive review of the best available evidence, and consistently deliver clear messages that preventive, diagnostic, restorative, and periodontal procedures and tooth extractions are safe throughout pregnancy and effective in improving and maintaining the oral health of mothers and their children. Dental diseases should be treated in a timely manner and dental emergency treatments can be provided at any time during pregnancy. Dental examination and prophylaxis should be conducted every 6 months to maintain the oral health of pregnant women. Conclusion: Published clinical guidelines are consistent in delivering clear messages and providing guidance to dental practitioners for timely and effective dental care during pregnancy. Prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of oral diseases are safe throughout the pregnancy. Keywords: clinical guidelines, consensus statements, dental care, oral health, pregnancy