Resorbable barrier and envelope flap surgery in the treatment of human gingival recession defects. Case reports

The present case report evaluates the treatment outcome following mucogingival surgery combined with a bioresorbable barrier in gingival recession defects in humans. A total of 11 buccal, Miller Class I or II, gingival recession defects in 6 patients were consecutively treated. The exposed root surface was ultrasonically scaled and conditioned with a tetracycline HCl solution (10 mg/ml) for 4 min. A buccal full/split thickness envelope flap was then elevated, and a bioresorbable matrix barrier was positioned to completely cover the exposed root surface and surrounding bone margins. A flap was then positioned at or slightly coronal to its original position. In all cases, a variable amount of membrane was intentionally left uncovered on the exposed root surface. Clinical recordings, assessed presurgery and at 6 months postsurgery, included defects-specific plaque and gingival scores, recession depth (RD), probing depth (PD), clinical attachment level (CAL) and keratinized tissue width (KT). Immediately postsurgery, and at weeks 1, 2, 4, 6 and 8 postsurgery, the location of gingival margin or granulation tissue covering the previously exposed root surface was recorded, as well as the extent of barrier exposure. Statistical analysis showed that RD decreased from 2.3+/-0.2 mm presurgery to 0.8+/-0.5 mm at 6 months postsurgery (p=0.001), representing a mean root coverage of 65% (range: 40-100%). CAL gain paralleled RD reduction (1.5+/-0.5 mm; p=0.0009), while KT showed a slight increase (0.3+/-0.6 mm) at 6 months postsurgery. Results indicate that clinical improvement of gingival recession defects may be achieved by means of a barrier-supported envelope technique. The bioresorbable matrix barrier represented an effective scaffold to support the reconstruction of the mucogingival unit.