Rohit Shah

The shift in the microbiota depends on host defense mechanism. The inflammation is resolved when the bacterial deposits are removed with or without antiseptic agents. The adjunctive use of antibiotic therapy along with mechanical debridement strengthens the argument that bacteria are the main etiological factor for periodontal diseases. But although all subjects with poor oral hygiene develop gingivitis, not all gingivitis progress to periodontitis. This led to the hypothesis that factors other than dental plaque like viruses, inflammatory response play an important role in periodontal disease. Viral mediated release of cytokines and chemokines from the host may further aggravate the virulence of periodontopathogenic bacteria. Viruses may also interfere in immune responses through immune modulators encoded within viral genomes, which include proteins that regulate antigen presentation, function as cytokines or cytokine antagonists, inhibit apoptosis and interrupt the complement cascade. We are in the early stages of understanding the tremendous diversity within the human microorganisms and its significant role in human health.

Periodontitis is a multifactorial infection of the periodontal tissues, caused by local bacterial infection with pathogenic microflora. The elimination of these putative microbes is essential for periodontal healing. In most of the cases, mechanical debridement suppresses these pathogenic flora, however, the effectiveness of these conventional treatment modalities, is limited by lack of accessibility into deeper pockets. This may result in reinfection or creation of reservoirs of the bacterial pockets. Hence, as an adjunct to mechanical therapy, local application /delivery of certain anti-microbials were experimented and were found to be equally effective with minimal side effects. This led to a new era of local drug delivery in Periodontic