Increased prevalence of gingival diseases in thalassemia patients has been consistently reported. In diseases with neutrophil dysfunctions, periodontal tissue is lost very rapidly. ?-thalassemia major (TM- ?) patients exhibit defective neutrophils and macrophages. Therefore, supplementary gingival inflammation is detrimental to periodontal tissues in these patients. This warrants attention to specialized oral health care intervention in these patients. This is the pioneer pre and post study that evaluates the effect of non-surgical periodontal therapy (NSPT) in ?-thalassemia major (TM- ?) patients with gingivitis. And also reports the prevalence and distribution of disease severity in TM- ? patients. 31 patients fulfilling the inclusion criteria were provided with protocol guided NSPT including scaling, polishing and chemical mouthrinse (0.2% CHX). Gingival index (GI), plaque score, Papillary bleeding index (PI) and periodontal pocket depth (PPD) were recorded with a periodontal probe (UNC-15) at baseline and evaluated after 6 weeks of intervention. Paired T-test was applied for GI, PBI and plaque and Wilcoxon signed rank test for PPD at the P- value of <0.05 86% of the assessed individuals had gingivitis (6% -mild, 44%- moderate and 36% - severe). NSPT showed highly significant (P - <.000) improvement from baseline to 6 weeks after intervention for all the clinical parameters, GI, PBI, plaque score and PPD. Within the limitations of the study, the results show that with proper protocol, multidisciplinary approach and careful screening of the patient’s systemic status, TM-? patients with gingivitis respond positively to local measures of plaque control.

Ayesha Hanif has completed her Master of Dental Surgery in the field of Periodontology. She is the first MDS periodontology in her province. Ayesha is a clinical faculty in the department of Periodontology, Ziauddin college of Dentistry, Karachi Pakistan. Ayesha is a commonwealth scholar 2020 and currently pursuing MSc in Clinical education from the University of Edinburgh. She exhibits keen interest in academia, research and clinical advances. She has more than 12 national and international publications to her name with multiple national and international conferences experience too. In the recent AD scientific index, she ranked 11th amongst her University faculty at the age of 32. She has also been working for the oral hygiene care of the people with special needs (Down Syndrome) and works actively with the organization for DS while advocating inclusive environment for all.