The effect of photodynamic therapy for periodontitis: a systematic review and meta-analysis

The purpose of this review was to evaluate the effectiveness of photodynamic therapy (PDT) for periodontitis in adults as a primary mode of treatment or as an adjunct to non-surgical treatment of scaling and root planing (SRP) compared to a conventional non-surgical SRP treatment.

MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, other relevant databases, and the International Pharmaceutical Abstracts were searched from their inception until May 2009 for randomized controlled trials of PDT compared to a placebo, no intervention, or non-surgical treatment in an adult population. Data on changes in clinical attachment level (CAL), probing depth, gingival recession, and full-mouth plaque or bleeding scores were extracted and meta-analyzed, and the pooled mean difference (MD) was reported.

Five studies were included in this review. These studies had a small sample size for some of the performed analysis with a moderate to high risk of biases. There were clinical heterogeneities among included studies. PDT as an independent treatment or as an adjunct to SRP versus a control group of SRP did not demonstrate statistically or clinically significant advantages. Combined therapy of PDT + SRP indicated a probable efficacy in CAL gain (MD: 0.34; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.05 to 0.63) or probing depth reduction (MD: 0.25 mm; 95% CI: 0.04 to 0.45 mm).

PDT as an independent treatment or as an adjunct to SRP was not superior to control treatment of SRP. Therefore, the routine use of PDT for clinical management of periodontitis cannot be recommended. Well-designed clinical trials are needed for proper evaluation of this therapy.