Treatment of peri‐implantitis with diode laser or mucosal flap surgery: A clinical randomized controlled trial

Replacing missing teeth with dental implants has become a popular treatment as it is a fixed solution compared to removable dentures. In some cases, the tissue surrounding the dental implant becomes inflected, which can lead to a breakdown of the bone in which the implant is attached; this disease is called peri-implantitis. Treating peri-implantitis has proven to be difficult. Few studies have previously investigated the treatment of peri-implantitis with infra-red laser. The goal was to compare if the healing of the peri-implantitis disease after treatment was comparable between infrared diode laser and conventional surgery, with emphasis on the patients' experiences. The healing was evaluated with clinical examination and assessment of surrounding bone on X-rays, as well as immune response and bacterial samples. We could not statistically confirm that the two treatments were equal in healing outcomes, but they had similar numbers of successful and unsuccessful healing patterns after six months. The surgery had some clinical advantages in the severe cases of peri-implantitis and the laser resulted in less discomfort during the first week of healing.