Heavy Smoking Reduces The Benefits Of Periodontitis Treatment: Study

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Denmark: Researchers found that heavy smoking may hinder the effect of periodontitis treatment; which is why smoking cessation should be part of periodontal therapy, according to a recent study published in the Journal of Dental Research.

Smoking can indeed have a serious impact on the effect of treatment of periodontitis. This widespread condition leads to the degradation of the teeth’s supportive tissue and, in serious cases, to the potential loss of the teeth.

The researchers studied the effect of different levels of smoking on the clinical results of treating more or less advanced cases of periodontitis.

This impactful study shows that heavy smokers with the most severe forms of inflammation obtained absolutely no benefit from the treatment. In contrast, heavy smokers struggling with moderate periodontitis only had a 50 percent effect from the treatment, compared to smokers who had less tobacco consumption.

“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,” says Julie Pajaniaye MHH, a dental hygienist and one of the authors behind the study.

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Heavy Smoking Reduces The Benefits Of Periodontitis Treatment: Study