Objective: The goal of this study was to analyze the effects of low level laser irradiation treatment and conservative treatment on gingival inflammation. Background: It is widely accepted today that the primary etiological factor for the onset of periodontitis is dental plaque, although the exact mechanism of damage remains unknown. Inflammation is a basic response of periodontal tissue to damage and serves as a fast first line of defense against damage and infections. The treatment of gingivitis and periodontitis has gone through various stages: from the simplest, classical treatment methods, through improved radical interventions, to a new era marked by laser technology. Low level laser irradiation has an anti-inflammatory effect, both general and local. Materials and methods: The research was done on patients who had chronic periodontal disease (mild periodontitis) with expressed clinical symptoms of gingival inflammation. All patients in the study underwent conservative treatment. After conservative therapy, the patients from the experimental group were subjected to 10 low level laser treatment sessions. Both groups underwent regular follow-up visits 1, 3, and 6 months after treatment, which involved only clinical examination using plaque index (PI), gingival index (GI), and bleeding on probing index (BOP index). Results: A considerable decrease in all three indexes after the application of both therapies was noticed. The follow-up visits revealed the difference in index values. With laser therapy, the values of indexes decreased steadily, whereas with conservative therapy they increased up to a certain point, but did not reach the pre-therapy values. Conclusions: A general conclusion can be drawn that low level laser irradiation (semiconductor, 670 nm) can be used as a successful physical adjuvant method of treatment, which, together with traditional periodontal therapy, leads to better and longer-lasting therapeutic results.

Objectives: Recent epidemiological studies have shown that individuals with periodontitis have a significantly increased risk of developing coronary heart disease. In addition to conventional risk factors, dyslipidemia may be associated with this increased risk. Methods: We measured concentration of lipids in patients with moderate to severe periodontitis before and 3, 6 and 12 months after local...

Periodontal regeneration is considered to be biologically possible but clinically unpredictable. In periodontitis, inflammation manifests clinically as loss of supporting periodontal tissues and regeneration of damaged tissue is the main goal of treatment. For decades, periodontists have sought to repair the damage through a variety of surgical procedures, and use of grafting materials and growth factors, and of barrier membranes. Reports have emerged that demonstrate which populations of adult stem cells reside in the periodontal ligaments of humans and other animals. This opens the way for new cell-based therapies for perio-dontal regeneration. This review provides an overview of adult human stem cells and their potential use in perio-dontal regeneration.

Objective: To evaluate the effect of periodontal treatment on gingival overgrowth in a group of renal transplant patients. Subjects and Methods: Twenty-five renal transplant recipients receiving immunosuppressive therapy with cyclosporine A (CsA) were randomly assigned to 2 groups. Group 1 (n = 15) included patients who had been specifically referred to a dental clinic to prevent gingival overgrowth and were given full periodontal therapy. Group 2 (n = 10) was comprised of patients who did not receive any professional periodontal cleaning. Patients from both groups were examined to determine their periodontal status before and after 3, 6 and 12 months in terms of their plaque index, gingival index and gingival overgrowth. During the examination, their overall health was stable. Results: For group 1, the scores were 1.89 (baseline), 0.98 (6 months) and 0.56 (12 months), and hence there were significant reductions (p = 0.0001). The gingival indices were 1.71 (baseline), 0.76 (6 months) and 0.35 (12 months), and the reductions were also significant (p = 0.0001). A significant association was observed between poor oral hygiene and the degree of gingival overgrowth. The 1-year post-treatment follow-up showed that patients in group 1 did not develop gingival overgrowth due to the use of CsA as group 2 did without prior periodontal therapy. Conclusion: Oral hygiene status was the most important variable related to the development and degree of gingival overgrowth due to the use of CsA.