Free rheumatoid factor in dental periapical lesions and gingivae of patients with rheumatoid disease.
To determine whether evidence of rheumatoid inflammation, in the form of free rheumatoid factor, might be found in the teeth-supporting tissues of patients with known rheumatoid disease, tissues from the dental periapical lesions of one group of 50 rheumatoid and 23 control patients, and from the marginal gingivae of a second group of 58 rheumatoid patients were examined by the direct immunofluorescence technique that employed fluroesceinisothiocyanate (FITC)-labelled aggregated human IgG. The gingival tissues contained no free rheumatoid factor. Free rheumatoid factor-producing plasma cells were, however, detected in the  dental periapical lesions of 3 of the 50 rheumatoid patients, i.e. in 6%, and in 1 of the control patients i.e., in 4%. This control patient had suffered from nephritis 10 months prior to the investigation. Because free rheumatoid factor did occur, albeit infrequently, in the dental periapical lesions of rheumatoid patients, a search for IgG rheumatoid factor, known to occur in greater abundance than the IgM type although "hidden", was indicated.
D000328:Adult; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000150:complications; D005260:Female; D005881:Gingiva / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010482:Periapical Abscess / Q000378:metabolism*; D010510:Periodontal Diseases / Q000209:etiology* / Q000378:metabolism; D010950:Plasma Cells / Q000378:metabolism; D012216:Rheumatic Diseases / Q000150:complications* / Q000378:metabolism; D012217:Rheumatoid Factor / Q000378:metabolism*; D013167:Spondylitis, Ankylosing / Q000150:complications
D012217:Rheumatoid Factor