Message from dr praveen sharma (previous chair of the early career group in the BSP) and dr mark ide (president of the BSP)

We hope that you find this ‘Perio’-focused issue of Dental Update particularly interesting and informative. The management of periodontitis has come a long way, as illustrated by the cover photo chosen for this issue. In the past, the halitosis and eventual loss of teeth associated with periodontitis necessitated the use of fans or having a ‘coy’ or ‘wry’ smile. These days, we are likely not alone in regarding tooth loss from periodontitis as an ultimate failure of dental care by/for a patient, and not something that is a normal part of growing old. This move towards increasing tooth retention and the ageing population that we encounter in the UK means that the burden of periodontitis in the UK is likely to increase. Hopefully, this issue should provide you with the most up-to-date and practical knowledge needed to diagnose and manage periodontitis and peri-implantitis in your patients, as well as to understand these disease processes and their complications a little better.