maintenance

Question 1

goals of perio maintenance

Answer 1

AAP 1998

1) reduce/prevent recurrence of perio disease
2) prevent tooth loss by monitoring dentition and prostheses
3) monitor and diagnose any new diseases, lesions or conditions

Question 2

how exactly does perio maintenance help to prevent the relapse back into perio

Answer 2

because the oral microflora exists in a dynamic equilibrium, hence perio maintenance helps to maintain the oral flora equilibrium at one of health

Sbordone 1990:
- After MPT, oral microflora re establishes itself after 2-3 months
- P gingi re establishes itself in 60 days
- PPD returns to baseline in 2 months
- hence freuqent professional debridement in addition to home care disrupts plaque biofilm and causes microbial shift to gram + rods and cocci, towards health

then can bring in how recurrence is unpredictable
- perio has periods of quiescence and exacerbation
Jeffcoat 1991’s random burst vs asynchronous models
hence patient requires frequent monitoring to diagnose breakdown process