title: Effect of periodontal dressing on non-surgical periodontal treatment outcomes: a systematic review.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Periodontal dressing has been advocated and showed some positive outcomes for placing over the surgical site after periodontal surgery. However, little is known about its effect on non-surgical therapy.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this review was to assess the clinical effect of periodontal dressing when used after non-surgical therapy.
  
  
  METHODS
  Two examiners performed an electronic search in several databases for relevant articles published in English up to November 2013. Selected studies were randomized human clinical trials (prospective or retrospective trials) with the clear aim of investigating the effect of periodontal dressing placement upon periodontal non-surgical mechanical therapy. Data were extracted from the included articles for analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Three randomized clinical trials fulfilled the inclusion criteria and thus were included in the data analysis. Statistical analysis could not be carried out due to the lack of clear data of the included studies. However, descriptive analysis showed its effectiveness in improving clinical parameters such as gain of clinical attachment level and reduction of probing pocket depth.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Placement of periodontal dressing right after non-surgical mechanical therapy can be beneficial in improving overall short-term clinical outcomes, although more controlled studies are still needed to validate this finding.
authors.affiliation: Graduate Periodontics, Department of Periodontics and Oral Medicine, University of Michigan School of Dentistry, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Monje
authors.affiliation: Private practice, Pavia, Italy.
authors.forename: A R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Kramp
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Surgery, International University of Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Criado
authors.affiliation: Graduate Periodontics, Department of Periodontics and Oral Medicine, University of Michigan School of Dentistry, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Suárez-López Del Amo
authors.affiliation: Graduate Periodontics, Department of Periodontics and Oral Medicine, University of Michigan School of Dentistry, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.|Department of Stomatology, Catholic University of Santiago de Guayaquil, Guayaquil, Ecuador.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Garaicoa-Pazmiño
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Surgery, International University of Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gargallo-Albiol
authors.affiliation: Graduate Periodontics, Department of Periodontics and Oral Medicine, University of Michigan School of Dentistry, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
authors.forename: H-L
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D055113:Chronic Periodontitis; D012534:Dental Scaling; D006801:Humans; D017622:Periodontal Attachment Loss; D010511:Periodontal Dressings; D010512:Periodontal Index; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D016745:Root Planing; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014945:Wound Healing
keywords: evidence-based dentistry; non-surgical debridement; periodontal attachment loss; periodontal dressing(s)