Er:YAG laser treatment in supportive periodontal therapy.

To assess clinical and microbiological outcomes of an Er:YAG laser in comparison with sonic debridement in the treatment of persistent periodontal pockets in a prospective randomized controlled multicentre study design.A total of 78 patients in supportive periodontal therapy with two residual pockets were included, 58 were available for the whole follow-up period. Root surfaces were instrumented either with a sonic scaler (Sonicflex(®) 2003 L) or with an Er:YAG laser (KEY Laser(®) 3). Clinical attachment levels (CAL), Probing depths (PD), Plaque control record (PCR) and Bleeding on probing (BOP) were assessed at baseline, 13 and 26 weeks after treatment. In addition, microbiological analysi…