The effect of omega‐3 fatty acids on active periodontal therapy: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

"Host modulatory therapy" (HMT) with ω-3 fatty acids aims at reducing inflammation. With HMT as an adjunct, a better result of periodontal therapy is expected. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis (MA) was to examine the additional effect of ω-3 fatty acids to non-surgical periodontal therapy (SRP) on the probing pocket depth (PPD) and the clinical attachment level (CAL).MEDLINE-PubMed and Cochrane-CENTRAL libraries were searched up to January 2021 for randomized controlled trials in patients with chronic periodontitis, treated with SRP/placebo as controls and SRP/ω-3 fatty acids as the test group.The search identified 173 unique abstracts, and screening resulted in 10 eligible publications. Descriptive analysis showed a significant effect on the PPD and CAL in favour of the groups with ω-3 fatty acids in the majority of comparisons. MA revealed that adjunctive use of ω-3 fatty acids to SRP resulted in 0.39 mm more PPD reduction (95% CI: -0.58; -0.21) and 0.41 mm more CAL gain (95% CI: -0.63; -0.19) than SRP alone.In patients with periodontitis, dietary supplementation with ω-3 fatty acids as an adjunct to SRP is more effective in reducing the PPD and improving the CAL than SRP alone. If SRP is indicated, the use of ω-3 fatty acids can be considered for a moderate extra added effect on PPD reduction and CAL gain. The strength of this recommendation is moderate.