The effect of ultrasonic scaling therapy in periodontitis III. A longitudinal study over three years

The purpose of the present study was to examine and evaluate the effect of clinical trials of non-surgical periodontal therapy (NSPT) by ultrasonic scaling alone for three years. A total of 51 individuals (27 males; 24 females) ranging in age from 21 to 61 years with moderately to extremely advanced periodontitis were studied following baseline assessments which included gingival index, plaque index, probing pocket depths, and probing attachment levels (PALs). The patients were subjected to NSPT by using supra- and subgingival scaling with ultrasonic instrumentation alone. The results showed that this therapy resulted in a pronounced and significant reduction (p < 0.001) of gingival inflammation and dental plaque formation for the 3 years of study. In addition, a significant reduction of probing depth as well as an obvious gain of PALs were found greater in sites with initial depth of 4-6 mm and 7 mm or more (p < 0.001) than those in sites with initial probings of 1-3 mm (p > 0.05) at each survey time point.