Why is it necessary to explain to the periodontal patient about the importance of scaling and root planing before any antimicrobials are used?

What will be an ideal response?

Patients may come to the dental office and request Periostat or local delivery of antimicrobial agents because they may have seen it in a magazine or heard about it on the radio or on TV. The importance of removing the biofilms (plaque) must be discussed before any adjunctive antimicrobial therapy is initiated. Scaling is necessary to disrupt the biofilms (although it is very difficult to remove) so that the antimicrobial/antibiotic can more effectively enter the bacteria to provide antimicrobial activity.