Guided Tissue Regeneration- A Novel Technique

The ultimate goal of periodontal therapy is to restore the architecture and function of the periodontium. Conventional periodontal surgery resulted in repair rather than regeneration and the defects persisted. Attachment was achieved and that the rest of the marginal seal was established by long junctional epithelium. Since then, a number of techniques that employ bone grafts, guided tissue regeneration (GTR), and combinations of the two have been proposed to delay the downgrowth of epithelium during healing and to provide an opportunity for regeneration to occur on the previously diseased root surface. With the development of GTR, the possibility of regenerating lost periodontal tissues has become a clinical reality. Using conventional treatment methods, the outcome of therapy depends on which type of cells first contact the root surface. In most cases, the first cells are the epithelial cells, proliferating apically and forming a long junctional epithelium. This epithelium prevents the formation of a new connective tissue attachment at the same time that it constitutes a barrier that protects the root from resorption and ankylosis induced by gingival connective tissue and bone.