Effect of Adjunctive Probiotic Therapy on the Treatment of Peri-implant Diseases - A Systematic Review

Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the effects of probiotics on peri-implant diseases.

Materials and methods: PubMed-MEDLINE, Scopus, Literature in the Health Sciences in Latin America and the Caribbean (LILACS) and Science Direct were searched until September 2019. Three authors independently carried out this search, using the following search algorithm to explore databases using Boolean operators ("peri-implant diseases" OR "dental implants") AND ("probiotics" OR "lactobacillus"). Randomized clinical trials were included. No limits were applied to the year and articles were restricted to those in the English, Spanish and Portuguese languages. Review articles, reports of clinical cases and works without mention of the topic were excluded.

Results: Five randomized clinical trials were analyzed in the final review process. For the primary outcomes - Periodontal probing depth (PPD) and bleeding on probing (BOP); and for the secondary outcames - plaque index, gingival index, gingival crevicular fluid and microbiological tests - no significant clinical effects of probiotics were observed.

Conclusion: Probiotics could be used during the treatment of peri-implant diseases. However, the most appropriate form of probiotic administration or the effectiveness of this approach are still unclear. There is currently insufficient evidence to demonstrate the benefits of the use of probiotics as an adjunctive therapy in patients with peri-implant diseases.