Effects of treatment with clindamycin hydrochloride on progression of canine periodontal disease after ultrasonic scaling.

This study was conducted to determine the benefit, if any, of combining antibiotic therapy with ultrasonic scaling, root planing, and polishing (USRP) over USRP alone as determined by improvements in plaque index, gingival index, and pocket depth measurements. Thirty dogs with signs of periodontal disease were randomly assigned to the USRP-only treatment group or to the USRP-antibiotic treatment group. USRP was performed on all dogs on study day 0. In addition, dogs in the USRP-antibiotic treatment group received clindamycin hydrochloride (Antirobe, Pharmacia & Upjohn, Kalamazoo, MI) dosed at 2.5 mg/lb body weight (BW) twice a day beginning on day 0 and continuing 8 days. Followup visits occurred 2, 6, 13, and 25 weeks after the start of the study. Treatment differences were compared using a mixed model analysis for repeated measures. This analysis indicated that the clindamycin regimen, after USRP, had a significant effect on plaque and pocket depth measures of periodontal disease but not on gingivitis. For plaque, average index scores for the treatment group were lower at all follow-up visits with significant differences at 2 and 6 weeks after cleaning. The antibiotic treatment group also maintained a significantly smaller average pocket depth, representing a 15% postcleaning reduction for the clindamycin group versus a 3% reduction in the control group.