Current research in diagnostic methods for assessing periodontal disease and its future impact.

A diagnostic test should be useful, ideally leading to a choice of treatment(s) that would confer benefits upon the patient. The many uses of diagnostic tests are listed in Table 2, but it should be recognized that no single test can be relied on exclusively. Combinations of various tests, especially those which detect infections and those which detect inflammation, would provide useful information for diagnosing and managing the patient's treatment. Certainly, any test or procedure can be considered useful if it facilitates the successful treatment of a patient's periodontal condition without a disproportionate increase in the cost to the patient or in his or her discomfort. By these criteria, many of the tests described in this paper are useful. The entry of these tests into clinical practice seems to be only a matter of time; their true usefulness is for the clinician to determine.