Evaluation of efficacy of subgingival administration of 1% chlorhexidine gel as an adjunct to scaling and root planing in the treatment of chronic periodontitis - A clinical and microbiological study.

Aim: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the clinical and microbiological effects of subgingival administration of 1% chlorhexidine gel (Chlorhexamed® 1% gel) in patients with chronic periodontitis.

Settings and Design: The study was done in a parallel-arm design with a total of 30 patients with 60 sites suffering from chronic periodontitis. The patients were divided into control and experimental groups.

Materials and Methods: The clinical parameters recorded were plaque index, gingival index, modified sulcular bleeding index, probing pocket depth and relative attachment level at baseline, 1 month and 3 month. Microbiological colony-forming units were assessed for Porphyromonas gingivalis, Fusobacterium nucleatum and Tannerella forsythia at baseline, 1 week, 1 month and 3 months. The control group received scaling and root planing (SRP) after baseline evaluation; however, the experimental group received the application of Chlorhexamed® gel within 48 hours after SRP. Then, the values obtained were subjected to statistical analysis.

Results: Both groups showed significant improvement from the baseline to 3 months in all clinical and microbiological parameters. The experimental group showed better improvement in all parameters.

Conclusion: The use of Chlorhexamed® gel has proven to be an efficacious adjunct with SRP in the treatment of chronic periodontitis.