%0 Journal Article %T Cemental tear: a case report with nonsurgical periodontal therapy %A Damasceno %A Leonardo Silveira %A Dutra %A Walderez Ornelas %A Melga£¿o %A Eder Gon£¿alves %A Souza %A Paulo Eduardo Alencar de %A Zen¨®bio %A Elton Gon£¿alves %A Horta %A Martinho Campolina Rebello %J Revista Odonto Ci¨ºncia %D 2012 %I Scientific Electronic Library Online %R 10.1590/S1980-65232012000100014 %X purpose: to report a case of cemental tear, a rare periodontal condition characterized by total or partial separation of the dental cementum, mainly addressing issues related to its diagnosis and treatment. case description: a 50 years-old man sought dental assistance complaining of pain located in the mandibular left second premolar that showed a 4 mm probing depth with the presence of a foreign body in the distal gingival sulcus. radiographic examination demonstrated a slight radiopaque fragment detached from the root. the fragment was removed without a periodontal flap. histopathological examination was performed and evidenced the presence of a cementum fragment with cementum lamellae, cementocytes, and adhered periodontal ligament fibers, confirming the diagnosis of cemental tear. conclusion: after a follow-up of 2 years, the nonsurgical periodontal therapy showed satisfactory clinical and radiographic outcome. therefore, this approach should be a suitable and predictable treatment modality for the cemental tear. %K dental cementum %K periodontal diseases %K dental scaling. %U http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_abstract&pid=S1980-65232012000100014&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en