Background and aims. The present study was envisaged to compare the efficacy of adjunctive use of Azithromycin with scaling and root planing (SRP) the adjunctive use Amoxicillin and SRP, and SRP alone in the treatment of chronic periodontitis. To correlate the use of N-Benzoyl DL-Arginine 2- Naphthylamide (BANA) hydrolysis test and percentage of spirochete count with the periodontal parameters before and after periodontal therapy.

 Materials and methods. Thirty subjects with chronic periodontitis were randomly selected and divided into three groups as follows. Group I: Subjects treated with scaling and root planing (SRP) alone. Group II: Subjects treated with SRP and systemic administration of Amoxicillin (SRP + AMOX). Group III: Subjects treated with SRP and systemic administration of Azithromycin (SRP + AZM). Periodontal parameters comprising of plaque index, bleeding index, probing pocket depth, clinical attachment level and microbiological parameters comprising of spirochete count and BANA test scores were assessed at base line and six weeks after completion of periodontal therapy for subjects in all the three groups.

 Results. The reduction in post-treatment scores as compared to pre-treatment scores of plaque index, bleeding index, pocket depth, clinical attachment levels and spirochete count was highly significant in all the groups(p<0.01).BANA hydrolysis is a reliable marker of periodontal disease as it has proved to be a suitable test for detection of spirochetes.

  Conclusion. The judicious use of systemic antibiotics in the treatment of chronic periodontitis may provide an additional benefit in the clinical outcome compared to SRP alone.

 Source: Journal of Periodentology & Implant Dentistry

 Full Text