Enhancing periodontal health through regenerative approaches: a commentary on the need for patient-reported outcomes

Starting in the 1970s, social scientists have discussed the importance of assessing subjective indicators of well-being and quality of life. Medical researchers followed this line of reasoning since the 1990s, emphasizing the significance of understanding how disease and its treatment affect patients' quality of life. Since the start of the 21(st) century, oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) received increasingly more attention. While research concerning the effects of periodontal disease and its surgical and non-surgical treatment on patients' lives has been considered in numerous studies, research including patient-reported outcomes when assessing how periodontal health can be enhanced through regenerative approaches is largely missing. This commentary proposes to consider 1) OHRQoL and 2) patients' treatment satisfaction as patient-reported outcomes in conjunction with objectively measured patient-centered factors, and discusses the value of such an approach.