Influence of periodontal biotype on the presence of interdental papillae.

The absence of interdental papillae can be a negative influence in aesthetics. Periodontal biotype (PB) is one of the factors that can possibly influence this relation and has to be considered in periodontal diagnosis and treatment planning. The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of the periodontal biotype on the presence and absence of interdental papillae. Forty-seven patients were included in this transversal clinical study. The PB, presence and height of interdental papilla, loss of papillary height, and the distance between the base of the contact point and bone crest (CP-BC) were evaluated. The chi-square test was used to verify the significance level of the PB distribution frequency between groups. The Mann-Whitney test was used to compare the CP-BC measures between the different PB groups, and the correlation test was used to verify the relation between the CP-BC distance and the presence of papillae. The thin PB group presented a significantly higher presence of papillae (71.1%) than did the thick PB group (59.6%, P < 0.05). An inverse and proportional correlation between the CP-BC distance and the presence of papillae was found. The authors concluded that the PB influenced the presence and height of interdental papillae.