LAUSR

Objectives The aim of this study was to assess in a multi-modular manner the bone healing 1 year post root-end surgery (RES) with leukocyte- and platelet-rich fibrin (LPRF) and Bio-Gide® (BG; Geistlich Pharma North America, Inc., Princeton, USA) as an occlusive membrane. Materials and methods A randomized controlled clinical trial (RCT) of RES +/− LPRF and +/− BG was performed. The follow-up until 1 year post RES was performed by means of ultrasound imaging (UI), periapical radiographs (PR), and cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT). Results From the 50 included patients, 6 dropped-out during follow-up. For the 44 assessed patients (34 with UI and 42 with PR and CBCT), there was no evidence ( p  > 0.05) for an effect of LRPF, neither on UI measurements nor on CBCT assessments. On the contrary, there was an indication for a better outcome with BG. UI presented significant shorter healing time for the bony crypt surface ( p  = 0.014) and cortical opening ( p  = 0.006) for the groups with BG. The qualitative CBCT assessment for the combined scores of the apical area and cortical plane was significantly higher for BG ( p  = 0.01 and 0.02). The quantitative CBCT measurement for bone healing after 1 year was lower with BG ( p  = 0.019), as well as the percentage of non-zero values ( p  = 0.026), irrespective of the preoperative lesion size and type. Furthermore, UI seemed to be safer for frequent follow-up during the early postoperative stage (0–3 months), whereas CBCT gave more accurate results 1 year post RES. Amongst the assessors, the qualitative PR analysis was inconsistent for a favorable outcome 1 year post RES with LPRF ( p  = 0.11 and p  = 0.023), but consistent for BG ( p  = 0.024 and p  = 0.023). Conclusions There was no evidence for improvement of bone healing when RES was applied with LPRF in comparison with RES without LPRF. However, RES with BG gave evidence for a better outcome than RES without BG. Clinical relevance The addition of an occlusive membrane rather than an autologous platelet concentrate improved bone regeneration 1 year post RES significantly, irrespective of the assessment device applied. The accuracy of PR assessment is questionable.