The potential impact of adjunctive consumption of probiotics in stage II and III periodontitis patients 12 weeks post non-surgical periodontal treatment

Aim: To determine the effect of probiotic consumption consisting of Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus and Lactilactobacillus curvatus and xylitol after non-surgical periodontal treatment (NSPT) evaluated on clinical, microbial and immunological endpoints. Materials and methods: Sixty-one stage II or III periodontitis patients received NSPT at baseline, followed by a 12-week consumption of probiotics supplement(n=32) or placebo(n=29). Clinical examination and microbial sampling were performed at baseline and week 12. The subgingival microbiota was analyzed using 16S sequencing, the salivary microbiota by metagenomic sequencing, and levels of selected cytokines and proteases in saliva by bead-based immunoassay. Results: Supplementary probiotic consumption positively impacted the clinical outcome by a greater reduction in bleeding on probing percentage (36% in the placebo group, 52.4% in the probiotic group, p<0.05) and number of periodontal pockets=5mm (36.1% in the placebo group, 64.7% in the probiotic group, p<0.05) compared to the placebo group. Probiotic consumption further beneficially altered the microbial composition of the subgingival and salivary microbiota, as well as salivary levels of albumin and chitinase compared to placebo(p<0.05). Conclusion: The tested probiotic supplement showed additional clinical improvement 12 weeks after NSPT, along with alterations in the subgingival and salivary microbiota, compared to the placebo group.