Systemic inflammatory markers following adjunctive Nd:YAG (1064 nm) laser irradiation to step 2 of periodontal therapy: a 12-month, randomized, controlled trial

Objectives The aim of this study was to investigate whether the use of adjunctive Nd:YAG (1064 nm) laser irradiation to full-mouth scaling and root planing (FM-SRP) may offer additional benefit in the systemic inflammatory status of the patient, as depicted in a variety of systemic biomarkers over FM-SRP alone, up to 12 months after treatment.Materials and methods A total of 60 otherwise healthy stage III/IV periodontal patients were equally distributed in 3 groups. The control group received FM-SRP. In laser A group, 1 week after FM-SRP, Nd:YAG laser irradiation was delivered in periodontal pockets with PD >= 4 mm using specific settings (3 W, 150 mJ, 20 Hz, 100 mu s). In laser B group Nd:YAG laser irradiation was delivered twice, 1 week after FM-SRP and 1 week later with different settings compared to laser A (2 W, 200 mJ, 10 Hz, 100 mu s).Results A significant reduction (p = 0.038) of IL-1 beta serum levels at the 6-month time point was observed for laser A group. IL-6 was found statistically significantly increased (p = 0.011) in the control group at the 6-week time point, whereas no difference was reported for the laser-treated groups (laser A, laser B).Conclusions The adjunctive use of Nd:YAG laser irradiation, prevented from IL-6 increase after FM-SRP, 6 weeks after treatment. Similarly, Nd:YAG laser irradiation (3 W, 150 mJ, 20 Hz,100 mu s) was associated with significantly lower IL-1 beta levels, 6 months post-operatively.Clinical relevance Additional Nd:YAG laser application to FM-SRP may provide a potential beneficial effect on systemic inflammation.