ABSTRACT
Objectives: Several procedures have been advocated as regenerative procedures in periodontology,
but one of the most widely used techniques up to now is guided tissue regeneration
(GTR). Likewise, different assessment methods based on clinical, radiographic or histological
measurements have been proposed for the evaluation of these regenerative procedures.
However, none of the methods used for human material incorporates quantitative X-ray
microanalysis to assess the degree of mineralization of the regenerated periodontal
hard tissues. The objective of this report was to evaluate, using quantitative X-ray
microprobe analysis, the newly-formed hard tissue in a periodontal infrabony defect.
Methods: Electron microprobe analysis was used to study the nature of the newly-formed
hard tissue 3 years after treatment with guided tissue regeneration in a patient with
localized aggressive periodontitis.
Results: Our quantitative analyses, using the peak-to-background method, showed calcium/phosphorus
mass ratio of 1.50±0.38 in the newly-formed hard tissue around the affected tooth
root.
Conclusion: Quantitative X-ray microprobe analysis is a useful tool that may provide
an accurate assessment of the degree of mineralization in an extremely small tissue
sample. (Eur J Dent 2007;1:40- 44)
Key words
Guided tissue regeneration - Bone regeneration - Periodontal regeneration - Quantitative
X-ray microprobe analysis - Mineralization