Bilaminar palatal connective tissue grafts obtained with the Modified Double Blade Harvesting Technique: technical description and case series

Introduction: The purpose of this case series is to present a technique to harvest palatal connective tissue grafts (CTGs) that concurrently provides several advantages over previously described techniques when applied to treat gingival recessions. Case Series: Twenty patients were treated with root coverage procedures using CTGs harvested with the Modified Double Blade Harvesting Technique (MDBHT). A double blade knife with two surgical blades set 1 mm apart was used in this case series. The palatal connective tissue was accessed through a horizontal incision and an envelope flap that was closed by primary intention. The grafts were measured immediately after harvesting with a periodontal probe. The overall mean length was 28.8 ± 7.8 mm and graft thickness was homogeneous and near to 1 mm in all the cases. Graft mean apicocoronal height was 5.0 ± 0.8 mm and 5.3 ± 1 mm at the molar and premolar levels, respectively. Clinical wound healing was evaluated at 7 days post-surgically and showed a modified early-wound healing index mean value of 3.0 ± 1.0. Conclusions: The introduced MDBHT consistently rendered grafts of uniform thickness and sufficient dimensions, while excluding epithelial tissue and the deeper aspects of the submucosa, thus avoiding rich fatty and glandular tissues. MDBHT allowed for donor site healing with minimal discomfort and without complications.