Ultrasonographic Assessment of Palatal Wound Healing

Summary

Palatal-tissue harvesting is a routinely performed procedure in periodontal plastic surgery. Subepithelial connective tissue graft (sCTG) is considered the gold standard in root coverage. However, over the years, several materials have been attempted to accelerate wound healing and to decrease the post-operative patient discomfort and pain, which are considered the most common disadvantages of tissue harvesting from the palate. Reharvesting from the same region could be necessary in some complicated gingical recessions. For this reason, patients may face long treatment times due to recovery periods of the palate between surgeries.

Platelet-rich fibrin (PRF) which has 3-dimensional fibrin matrix structure contributes to regeneration of surgical wounds by releasing growth factors for 10-14 days and showing angiogenic properties.

In medicine and dentistry, ultrasonography (USG) method can be used to measure tissue thickness, vascularization, elasticity and blood flow. USG, as a non-invasive method, can provide objective data in evaluating the effects of surgical techniques and biomaterials used on soft tissue healing dynamics and tissue perfusion.

The investigators hypothesised that leukocyte rich PRF (L-PRF) application to the palatal area after sCTG harvesting could increase palatal tissue thickness and vascularity throughout 3-month follow-up period compared to the controls. Therefore, in this study, the investigators aimed to evaluate the effects of the L-PRF membrane on soft tissue donor site healing after harvesting sCTG in terms of wound healing dynamics using USG method.

Conditions

• Gingival Recession
• Palate; Wound

Interventions

PROCEDURE

connective tissue harvesting

The subepithelial connective tissue graft was obtained in each patient using the single incision technique from the region between the mesial of canine and the mesial of first molar in the palate. Connective tissue dimensions were approximately 10 × 5 × 2 mm. Finally, the incision line was sutured with 5/0 synthetic, nonabsorbable, sterile monofilament suture

DIAGNOSTIC_TEST

ultrasonography

A 6-18 MHz intraoral probe was used in intraoral USG examinations. Sterile gel was applied to the intraoral probe and covered with a stretch film. Then, it was placed directly on the mucosal surface of the donor site in the palatal area. Mucosal thickness was evaluated using the B-mode of the device, and vascularization was evaluated using the color doppler and pulsed wave doppler modes of the device. The following equation is used and calculated by US unit: Pulsality index (PI) = (Vmax-Vmin)/(Vmean) (Vmax is peak systolic flow velocity, Vmin is diastolic flow velocity and Vmean is mean flow velocity). The mean PI values of each patient were measured.

OTHER

autolog platelet rich fibrin application

Leukocyte rich PRF (L-PRF) was obtained with the centrifugation of the two tubes at 2800 rpm for 12 minutes. After centrifugation, L-PRF clots were taken from the tubes using sterile tweezers, separated from the red blood cell base using scissors. Then L-PRF membrane was placed into the donor site.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Pamukkale University

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Gizem Torumtay Cin, asist.prof. · Pamukkale University Faculty of Dentistry

Eligibility

Min Age

20 Years

Max Age

65 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2022-09-05

Primary Completion

2023-08-08

Completion

2023-08-08

Countries

• Turkey (Türkiye)

Study Locations