RESUMO
The long term success of periodontal therapy depends less on the manner in which the case was treated than on vigorous follow-up of the wound healing process immediately after therapy and on how well the case is maintained in subsequent recall (Rosling et al 1976, Nyman et al 1977, Knowles et al 1979, Ramfjord et al 1982, West felt et al 1985) SPT has gone by many names, including recall and maintenance, but the name was changed at the 1989 World Workshop in Clinical Periodontics to reflect the fact that the long-term treatment provided for patients during supportive periodontal treatment is of critical importance to the survival of the dentition. In most cases, this form of therapy is used following the completion of active periodontal therapy, but it can be used in other phases of treatment as well.1