Summary Review/Periodontal Disease
Evidence-Based Dentistry (2009) 10, 39. doi:10.1038/sj.ebd.6400643
Manual and electronic probes have similar reliability in the measurement of untreated periodontitis
Question: Do manual or electronic probes produce the most reproducible measurements of clinical attachment level in periodontitis patients?
Address for correspondence: Carina Silva-Boghossian, Rua Barão de Guaratiba, 228 Glória, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Cep 22211-150, Brazil. E-mail address: carinabogho@hotmail.com
Richard Niederman1
1Forsyth Institute, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Silva-Boghossian CM, Amaral CS, Maia LC, Luiz RR, Colombo AP. Manual and electronic probing of the periodontal attachment level in untreated periodontitis: a systematic review. J Dent 2008; 36: 651–657
Abstract
Data Sources
The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, PubMed Medline and Latin American and Caribbean Health Science literature databases were searched, and searches made by hand of identified papers, to source relevant data. (BIOSIS Previews) were searched. There were no language restrictions.
Study selection
Studies were evaluated by two reviewers independently. Only clinical trials were included that were published in the English, Spanish and Portuguese languages and were performed on humans. Articles were excluded when the examiners were not calibrated; when they did not compare manual and electronic probing techniques; when they did not measure the clinical attachment level (CAL); and when the subjects did not present destructive periodontal disease or had already received periodontal treatment.
Data extraction and synthesis
The quality of the identified studies was assessed and standardised data extracted. Only two studies met all the selection criteria so no meta-analysis was performed.
Results
Only two of the 37 identified articles were included in the review. The results of these two studies showed that the mean variance and the absolute mean difference between CAL measurements for the two types of probes were not statistically different.
Conclusions
Manual and electronic probes were of similar reliability when used to measure CAL in individuals who had untreated periodontitis and when used by a calibrated examiner, but this finding is not supported by strong evidence.
