Comparison of Clinical and Esthetic Results of Different Techniques in the Treatment of Multiple Gingival Recessions

Objective This clinical study aimed to compare the short‐term (6‐month) outcomes of root coverage using a subepithelial connective tissue graft with either a modified coronally advanced flap or the tunnel technique in the treatment of recession type I multiple gingival recessions. Materials and Methods A total of 29 patients (9 males, 20 females) aged 19–59 years were included, with 68 gingival recession defects (24 in the mandible and 44 in the maxilla). Participants were divided into two groups: Group 1 ( n = 14) received root coverage using a subepithelial connective tissue graft with the modified coronally advanced flap, while Group 2 ( n = 15) was treated using the tunnel technique. Clinical and esthetic outcomes were assessed at 1 and 6 months postoperatively. Results At the 6‐month follow‐up, no statistically significant differences were found between the groups in plaque index, gingival index, papilla height, papilla width, clinical attachment level, or probing depth ( p > 0.05). While recession depth significantly decreased and keratinized gingival width increased in both groups ( p < 0.05), no intergroup differences were observed ( p > 0.05). Mean root coverage was 54.26% ± 29.5% in Group 1 and 63% ± 36% in Group 2 ( p > 0.05). Esthetic outcomes were evaluated using the Root Coverage Esthetic Score (RES), with mean scores of 6.41 ± 2.02 in Group 1 and 6.94 ± 2.09 in Group 2; no significant difference was observed between the groups ( p > 0.05). Conclusion Within the study's limitations, both surgical techniques yielded comparable clinical and esthetic outcomes at 6 months. Clinical Considerations In this study, the clinical and esthetic outcomes of treating patients with multiple gingival recession defects using a subepithelial connective tissue graft with either the modified coronally advanced flap technique or the tunnel technique were compared. The results demonstrated that both techniques achieved successful outcomes. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT06509165