July 2012

Objective: Antimicrobials are increasingly being used as adjuncts to non-surgical or surgical periodontal therapy. The main purpose of the present analysis was to evaluate the effect of systemic ornidazole (ORN) on total anaerobic microbial counts of subjects with moderate to advanced chronic periodontitis (CP). Methods: This was a single-center, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial of six months duration. Fifty-eight subjects presenting with at least 12 teeth with probing depth (PD) ≥ 4 mm were selected. Thirty subjects received full-mouth scaling and root planing (SRP) + placebo (control group) and 28 subjects received full-mouth SRP + ORN (test group). The total anaerobic counts were analyzed by collecting subgingival plaque from deepest pockets at baseline (B/L), 1 week, 1 month, 3 months and 6 months. Results: Paired and unpaired t-tests were used to determine the inter- and intra-group differences. Fifty subjects were evaluated up to six months. There was a significant difference in the number of anaerobes in the two groups at all the intervals except B/L (p < 0.05). Conclusion: The systemic use of ORN very efficiently reduced the microbial load in the group that received antibiotics.