Statistical analysis
BLEEDING, DENTAL PLAQUE
Statistical analysis of data other than 16S rRNA sequencing was performed using SPSS software (version 16.0; SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL) and GraphPad Prism 8 (GraphPad Software Inc., La Jolla, CA). Categorical variables are presented as natural frequencies, and continuous variables as mean ± standard deviation. The clinical characteristics of the participants were analyzed using Kruskal–Wallis (with Dunn–Bonferroni post hoc) or chi-squared tests. Within-group and between-group differences in gingival, sulcus bleeding, and dental plaque indices, BOP%, and oral malodor values were analyzed by repeated measure (RM) ANOVA, followed by Bonferroni post hoc tests and Student’s 