Periodontitis treatments redundant for heavy smokers

A study from the Journal of Dental Research considered the effect of different levels of smoking on the clinical success of periodontitis treatments.

The researchers observed that heavy smokers with severe inflammation received no benefits from treatment. Heavy smokers with moderate periodontitis only had a 50 per cent effect from the treatment, compared to smokers with lower tobacco consumption.

Julie Pajaniaye, dental hygienist and one of the authors of the study, said to EurekaAlert!, “To our surprise, we could see that the disease had actually grown worse in some parameters in the hardest-hit group, despite the fact that this particular group had received the most extensive, individually-designed treatment.”