A clinical periodontal assessment pro forma incorporating the new periodontal classification

The new periodontal classification is a huge step forward in the effective management of periodontal diseases in clinical practice. However, despite the production of numerous flowcharts and tables to streamline its clinical use, dental professionals have found its application time-consuming and difficult to administer in clinical practice due to its complexity. As a practising clinician, the aim of this paper was to explore ways to streamline the application of the new periodontal classification system for clinicians to save clinical time and improve the provision of effective periodontal diagnoses and treatments for their patients. This paper describes and illustrates a simplified clinical system for the application of the periodontal classification system in clinical practice, to enable practitioners to quickly and easily derive a diagnosis and treatment plan for their periodontal patients using the new classification system.