Utilization of a periodontal endoscope in nonsurgical periodontal therapy: A randomized, split-mouth clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: The removal of subgingival calculus to obtain gingival health is an integral part of nonsurgical periodontal therapy. The periodontal endoscope is used by some clinicians to help enhance access to effectively remove subgingival calculus; however, longer-term studies on this subject are still lacking. The purpose of this randomized, controlled clinical trial was to compare the clinical outcomes of scaling and root planing (SRP) using a periodontal endoscope versus conventional SRP using loupes for up to 12 months, utilizing a split-mouth design.

METHODS: Twenty-five patients were recruited who exhibited generalized stage II or stage III periodontitis. SRP was rendered by the same experienced hygienist using either a periodontal endoscope or conventional SRP using loupes, following random assignment of the left and right halves of the mouth. All periodontal evaluations were done by the same periodontal resident at baseline, and at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months after therapy.

RESULTS: Single-rooted teeth interproximal sites displayed a significantly lower percentage of improved sites (P < 0.05) than multirooted teeth for probing depth and clinical attachment level (CAL). Maxillary multirooted interproximal sites favored the use of the periodontal endoscope at the 3- and 6-month time periods (P = 0.017 and 0.019, respectively) in terms of the percentage of sites with improved CAL. Mandibular multirooted interproximal sites showed more sites with improved CAL using conventional SRP than with the periodontal endoscope (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION: Overall, the use of a periodontal endoscope was more beneficial in multirooted sites compared to single-rooted sites, specifically in maxillary multirooted sites.