The adjunctive use of platelet concentrates in the therapy of gingival recessions: a systematic review and meta-analysis

This systematic review aims to evaluate the adjunctive efficacy of platelet concentrates in surgical treatment of gingival recessions. The MEDLINE, EMBASE and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched for entries up to January 2014. Only clinical randomised controlled trials (RCTs) with a follow-up 3months that evaluated recession areas (Miller Class I or II) were included. Outcome variables include changes of recession depth (RD), keratinised tissue width (KTW), clinical attachment level (CAL) and wound healing index. Data were adjusted for a meta-analysis. Nine researches were included in meta-analysis. With the adjunctive use of platelet concentrates, there was statistically significant reduction in RD and KTW improvement while no significant effect was found in CAL. The adjunctive use of platelet concentrates also showed better healing in gingival recessions. Platelet concentrates might exert a positive effect on treatment of gingival recessions. It could accelerate early wound healing and reduce post-surgery complications in recession defects. However, more high-quality, long follow-up and large-scale RCTs are still needed in future.