The Effect of an Er,Cr:YSGG Laser in the Management of Intrabony Defects Associated with Chronic Periodontitis Using Minimally Invasive Closed Flap Surgery.

By Dr Rana Al Falaki

 - A Case Series

- Introduction

   Surgical treatment for the management of periodontal pockets associated with intrabony defects can be challenging. Due to access, these defects often require surgical intervention, employing regenerative surgical techniques including barrier membranes, osseous graft material or application of a biologically active material.  The alternative therapy is root surface debridement, which may have an unpredictable outcome with the exception of narrow three wall bony defects. 

There has been increasing interest in the use of lasers for managing periodontitis including non-surgical root surface debridement and a range of surgical therapies, with minimal clinical trials to demonstrate efficacy. The Nd:YAG has shown improvement in periodontal clinical trials with clinical parameters including a histologic assessment. 1, 2, 3). The Er:YAG laser has been proposed as an alternative or adjunct to conventional mechanical periodontal therapy. Randomized clinical trials of these wavelengths for managing periodontitis have shown mixed advantages over conven
tional flap treatment. 4, 5, 6, 7) There are few studies that have evaluated the use of the Er,Cr:YSGG watercooled laser 8, 9).

The objective of this case series was to report on, and develop a retrospective analysis of the effectiveness of utilizing an Er,Cr:YSGG laser as a minimally invasive surgery procedure to manage periodontitis associated with intrabony defects.

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