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Influence of graft thickness on tunnel technique procedures for root coverage: a pilot split-mouth randomized controlled trial

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Abstract

Objective

To compare the clinical outcomes of the tunnel technique (TUN) combined with either thin connective tissue graft (CTG) (TUN + thin CTG) (1 mm) or thick CTG (TUN + thick CTG) (2 mm) for the treatment of localized gingival recession (GR).

Material and methods

Twelve patients, with 24 maxillary localized type RT1 GR were randomly assigned into two groups. Clinical, esthetic, and patient‐reported outcomes were evaluated at baseline and at 6-month follow-up.

Results

The TUN + thin CTG group showed a higher mean GR reduction (1.53 ± 0.66) (primary outcome variable) than the TUN + thick CTG group (1.44 ± 0.89), but no statistically significant difference was detected at the 6-month follow-up (p = 0.77). No statistically significant differences were found between TUN + thin CTG and TUN + thick CTG concerning complete root coverage (CRC) (58.3% versus 41.7%, respectively), gingival ticknness (GT) or Root-coverage Esthetic Score (RES) at 6 months. Regarding patient‐reported outcomes, both groups reported having experienced similar pain at 7 days (p > 0.05). No statistically significant differences were found between the groups in the analysis of the aesthetic score.

Conclusion

Both treatments showed a similar reduction in GR. In addition, similar CRC, GT, RES, pain and self-reported esthetics were achieved in both groups.

Clinical relevance

Application of thin CTG provided a similar result than thick CTG for the treatment of RT1 localized GR.

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Data availability

The data that support the findings of this study are openly available in [“figshare”] at https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.21388206.v2

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. São Leopoldo Mandic Dental Institute and Research Centre, Campinas, SP, Brazil

    Victor Aguirre Teodoro de Carvalho, Marco Antonio Marques Mattedi & Danilo Lazzari Ciotti

  2. School of Dentistry, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas, Lima, Peru

    Andrea Vergara-Buenaventura

  3. Department of Periodontology, Graduate Program in Dentistry, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil

    Francisco Wilker Mustafa Gomes Muniz

  4. School of Dentistry, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Cientifica del Sur, Calle Cantuarias 398Miraflores, 15048, Lima, Peru

    Jonathan Meza-Mauricio

  5. Department of Periodontology and Oral Implantology, Dental Research Division, University of Guarulhos, Guarulhos, SP, Brazil

    Marcelo Faveri

Authors
  1. Victor Aguirre Teodoro de Carvalho
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  2. Marco Antonio Marques Mattedi
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  4. Francisco Wilker Mustafa Gomes Muniz
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  5. Jonathan Meza-Mauricio
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  7. Danilo Lazzari Ciotti
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Contributions

All the authors have made substantial contributions to the conception and design of the study. VAT was involved in data collection. MF, DC and FWMGM were involved in data interpretation. JMM, AVB, VAT, MAMM and DC were involved in drafting the manuscript. All the authors critically revised and approved the final version of the manuscript to be published.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jonathan Meza-Mauricio.

Ethics declarations

Ethical approval

The study was conducted in compliance with the principles outlined in the experimentation involving human subjects in the Declaration of Helsinki of the World Medical Association (2013). The study protocol was reviewed and approved by the Research Ethics Committee of the School of Dentistry of the University São Leopoldo Mandic (protocol CAAE 30247720.1.0000.5374).

Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Conflicts of interest

The authors have no financial interest in the companies whose materials are included in this article.

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Teodoro de Carvalho, V.A., Mattedi, M.A.M., Vergara-Buenaventura, A. et al. Influence of graft thickness on tunnel technique procedures for root coverage: a pilot split-mouth randomized controlled trial. Clin Oral Invest 27, 3469–3477 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00784-023-04955-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00784-023-04955-x

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