Clinical decisions in dentistry were previously based upon the experience of clinicians, like, “It works in my hands already, and has done so for many years, then just do the same.” Therapies in this fashion were often unpredictable, since the clinician unaware of factors important for success and those contributing to failure. Our desire to keep up to date with new techniques, tests, materials, etc is often tinged with doubt about the claims of superiority of these new treatments or products. Evidence-based periodontology aims to facilitate an approach accelerating the introduction of the best research into patient care.

Keywords: Evidence, periodontal therapy, study design