Treatment of human periodontal infrabony defects with hydroxyapatite+ β tricalcium phosphate bone graft alone and in combination with platelet rich plasma: A randomized clinical trial.

Background: The present study was aimed at comparing the clinical effectiveness of two regenerative techniques - platelet rich plasma (PRP) + bone graft (HA + β TCP) versus bone graft (HA + β TCP) + normal saline in the treatment of periodontal intrabony defects. Materials and Methods: Ten patients diagnosed with chronic periodontitis were enrolled in a randomized split mouth clinical trial. Following phase I therapy the sites were randomly assigned to the test group - PRP + bone graft (HA + β TCP) and control group - saline + bone graft (HA + β TCP). Clinical parameters recorded at baseline and 6 months included plaque index, probing pocket depth, relative attachment levels, and relative gingival margin levels. Hard tissue evaluation was done using digital radiography to evaluate the image intensity and therefore the radioopacity of a desired region of interest in the intrabony defect. Pre- and postoperative comparisons were made between the treatment groups at 6 months. Results: Test group sites showed a significantly higher reduction in pocket depth compared to control group sites. Test group sites showed a significantly higher amount of radioopacity in the regions of interest, indicative of better graft remodeling, compared to control group sites. Conclusion: (HA + β TCP) bone graft appears to be a beneficial material in the treatment of human periodontal intrabony defects. When combined with platelet-rich plasma there is a significantly higher reduction in probing pocket depth, higher gain in attachment levels and higher amount of radio-density seen in the intrabony defects.