SURGICAL VERSUS NON-SURGICAL TREATMENT AND RECURRENT PERIODONTAL-DISEASE IN BEAGLE DOGS

The present study was designed to compare clinical, microbiologic and histometric parameters of recurrent periodontal disease in areas which had been treated either surgically (SU) or nonsurgically (NS). Periodontal disease was induced for 6 months in 3 quadrants in each of 6 beagle dogs. 2 of the 3 diseased quadrants were treated by definitive surgical or nonsurgical therapy followed by plaque control for 4 months. 2 dogs were than sacrificed to provide histometric data. Periodontal disease was reinduced in the remaining 4 dogs by allowing plaque accumulation for 6 months after which the dogs were sacrificed for histometric analysis. Clinical parameters were recorded and darkfield microscopic analysis of subgingival plaque samples was performed at regular intervals. Following 6 months of plaque accumulation during disease reinduction, there were significant changes (p<0.05) in the pocket depths, bleeding scores and attachment levels in both the SU and NS areas. These changes were accompanied by significant increases (p<0.05) in the proportions of spirochetes and motile rods and decreases in the proportions of coccoid cells in both the SU and NS areas. There were, however, no significant differences between the SU and NS areas when clinical and microbiolgoic parameters were compared. At the end of the disease reinduction phase, the length of inflammatory cell infiltrate and % inflammed connective tissue had increased significantly in both the SU and NS areas. However, there were no siginficant differences in any of the histometric parameters between the SU and NS areas after disease reinduction. The present findings suggest that progression of disease recurrence, measured in clinical, microbiological and histometric parameters, may be independent of the mode of previous periodontal therapy.