title: Combined photodynamic and low-level laser therapies as an adjunct to nonsurgical treatment of chronic periodontitis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the use of dental lasers for treatment of periodontal diseases. The purpose of this short-term clinical trial was to evaluate the effects of a combination of photodynamic therapy with low-level laser therapy as an adjunct to nonsurgical treatment of chronic periodontitis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-four nonsmoking adults with untreated chronic periodontitis were randomly assigned in a split-mouth design to receive scaling and root debridement with or without one course of adjunctive photodynamic therapy and low-level laser therapy within 5 d. Plaque, bleeding on probing, probing depth and gingival recession were recorded at baseline, 1 and 3 mo after the treatment. Gingival crevicular fluid was collected for assay of interleukin-1β levels at baseline, 1 wk and 1 mo.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The test teeth achieved greater reductions in the percentage of sites with bleeding on probing and in mean probing depth at 1 mo compared with the control teeth (p < 0.05). A significant decrease in gingival crevicular fluid volume was observed in both groups at 1 wk (p < 0.001), with a further decrease at 1 mo in the test sites (p < 0.05). The test sites showed a greater reduction of interleukin-1β levels in gingival crevicular fluid at 1 wk than the control sites (p < 0.05). No significant differences in periodontal parameters were found between the test and control teeth at 3 mo.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The present study suggests that a combined course of photodynamic therapy with low-level laser therapy could be a beneficial adjunct to nonsurgical treatment of chronic periodontitis on a short-term basis. Further studies are required to assess the long-term effectiveness of the combination of photodynamic therapy with low-level laser therapy as an adjunct in nonsurgical treatment of periodontitis.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Dentistry, Periodontology, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lui
authors.forename: E F
authors.initials: EF
authors.lastname: Corbet
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Jin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D055113:Chronic Periodontitis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D012534:Dental Scaling; D005260:Female; D005883:Gingival Crevicular Fluid / Q000737:chemistry; D006801:Humans; D053583:Interleukin-1beta / Q000032:analysis; D028022:Low-Level Light Therapy; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D057747:Periodontal Debridement; D010778:Photochemotherapy; D016037:Single-Blind Method; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D053583:Interleukin-1beta