Open Access

Objective: To evaluate the benefit of resective surgical periodontal therapy (root amputation or resection, root separation, tunnelling) in periodontitis patients exhibiting class II and III furcation involvement (FI) compared with non‐surgical treatment (SRP) or open flap debridement (OFD). Material: Outcomes were tooth survival (primary), vertical probing attachment gain, and reduction in probing pocket depth (secondary) evidenced by randomized clinical trials, prospective and retrospective cohort studies and case series with ≥ 12 months of follow‐up. Search was performed on 3 electronic databases from January 1998 to December 2018. Results: From a total of 683 articles, 66 studies were identified for full‐text analysis and 7 studies finally included. Six hundred sixty‐seven patients contributed 2,021 teeth with class II or III FI. Data were very heterogeneous regarding follow‐up and distribution of FI. A total of 1,515 teeth survived 4 to 30.8 years after therapy. Survival ranged from 38%–94.4% (root amputation or resection, root separation), 62%–67% (tunnelling), 63%–85% (OFD) and 68%–80% (SRP). Overall, treatment provided better results for class II FI than class III. Conclusion: Within their limits, the data indicate that in class II and III FI, SRP and OFD may result in similar survival rates as root amputation/resection, root separation or tunnelling.