How do GTR and GBR Differ? A Periodontitis Case Treated Using an Equine-derived, Enzyme-deantigenic, Collagenpreserving Bone Graft, and Collagen Membranes

Abstract

The present case illustrates how a tooth, which had a highly questionable prognosis, was preserved by carrying out a periodontal regeneration surgery. Treatment of periodontitis involves a careful consideration of all the factors that may allow the achievement of a favorable outcome; among those, the skillful use of guided tissue regeneration (GTR) membranes is of paramount importance. A 39-year-old patient presented with a mobile central upper incisor due to severe periodontitis and was treated according to GTR principles using a collagen membrane. A collagen-preserving bone graft was also used, as a scaffold for clot formation and cellular infiltration, which was covered with a second collagen membrane. The patient was contacted for follow-up assessment at 3, 6, 12, and 18 months after surgery. Follow-up radiographs showed that bone regeneration occurred around the involved tooth and very little tooth mobility was observed. The patient's masticatory function, appearance, and comfort were favorable. The use of two equine collagen membranes with the purpose of creating the best conditions to carry out periodontal regeneration according to GTR principles, in association with an equine, collagen-preserving, enzyme-deantigenic bone graft, allowed sufficient bone regeneration to salvage a tooth that was deemed otherwise lost because of periodontitis. In cases of teeth that are severely compromised by periodontitis, the use of collagen membranes according to GTR principles can allow the regeneration of the periodontal tissues; the association with a bone substitute having well-known performance rates, covered with a collagen membrane (guided bone regeneration, GBR) can, in some cases, improve bone regeneration at the defect site.