The impact of non-surgical periodontal treatment on serum levels of long chain– polyunsaturated fatty acids: a pilot randomized clinical trial Martinez GL, Koury JC, Brito F, Fischer RG, Gustafsson A, Figueredo CM. The impact of non-surgical periodontal treatment on serum levels of long chain– polyunsaturated fatty acids: a pilot randomized clinical trial. J Periodont Res 2014; 49: 268–274. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd Background and Objective: Our group recently found higher levels of serum long chain–polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFAs) in patients with chronic peri- odontitis compared to controls. However, the effect of periodontal treatment on LC-PUFA serum levels has not been investigated. The primary aim of the pres- ent study was to investigate the impact of periodontal treatment on LC-PUFA serum levels. A secondary aim was to assess the effect of dietary x-3 supplemen- tation on clinical outcome. Material and Methods: The test group was composed of 10 patients with gener- alized chronic periodontitis (mean age 44 Æ 6.4 years) treated with scaling and root planing associated with 4 mo of x-3 supplementation eicosapetaenoic acid (EPA) plus docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), 3 g/d. The placebo group was com- posed of 11 patients (47.9 Æ 10.5 years) that received scaling and root planing plus placebo. The periodontal examination included probing depth, clinical attachment level, bleeding on probing and visible plaque index. Docosapentae- noic acid (DPA), EPA, DHA and arachidonic acid (AA) were detected using gas chromatograph. Results: In the placebo group, all LC-PUFAs levels reduced significantly (DHA, DPA and AA, p = 0.004; EPA, p = 0.008). In the test group, only DPA and AA showed a significant reduction (p = 0.005). Moreover, a significant decrease in the ratios AA/EPA and AA/DHA (p = 0.005) was observed in the test group. Conclusion: Non-surgical periodontal treatment reduced significantly the serum levels of all analyzed LC-PUFAs except those presented in the supplementation. The x-3 dietary supplementation had no effect on clinical outcome of treatment. G. L. Martinez 1 , J. C. Koury 2 F. Brito 3 , R. G. Fischer 1 , A. Gustafsson 4 , C. M. Figueredo 1,4 1 Department of Periodontology, Faculty of Odontology, Rio de Janeiro State University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 2 Nutrition Institute, Rio de Janeiro State University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 3 Division of Periodontology, Faculty of Odontology, Veiga de Almeida University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and 4 Division of Periodontology, Institute of Odontology, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden Carlos M. Figueredo, PhD, Department of Periodontology, Faculty of Odontology, Rio de Janeiro State University, Boulevard 28 de Setembro 157, Pavilh~ ao de Pesquisa, Vila Isabel, Rio de Janeiro 20551-030, Brazil Tel: +55 21 2868 8282 Fax: +55 21 2868 8363 e-mail: cmfigueredo@hotmail.com Key words: non-surgical periodontal treatment; omega-3 supplementation; periodontitis; polyunsaturated fatty acid Accepted for publication April 13, 2013 The concept of host response modula- tion to achieve better clinical results during periodontal therapy has been introduced in the last decade (1). Among the possibilities of host modu- lation, was found the use of matrix metalloproteinases inhibitors (TIMPs) (2), bisphosphonates (3), non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (4) and J Periodont Res 2014; 49: 268–274 All rights reserved © 2013 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd JOURNAL OF PERIODONTAL RESEARCH doi:10.1111/jre.12104