Gingivitis as a risk factor in periodontal disease.
BACKGROUND
Dental plaque has been proven to initiate and promote gingival inflammation. Histologically, various stages of gingivitis may be characterized prior to progression of a lesion to periodontitis. Clinically, gingivitis is well recognized.


METHODS
Longitudinal studies on a patient cohort of 565 middle class Norwegian males have been performed over a 26-year period to reveal the natural history of initial periodontitis in dental-minded subjects between 16 and 34 years of age at the beginning of the study.


RESULTS
Sites with consistent bleeding (GI=2) had 70% more attachment loss than sites that were consistently non-inflamed (GI=0). Teeth with sites that were consistently non-inflamed had a 50-year survival rate of 99.5%, while teeth with consistently inflamed gingivae yielded a 50-year survival rate of 63.4%.


CONCLUSIONS
Based on this longitudinal study on the natural history of periodontitis in a dentally well-maintained male population it can be concluded that persistent gingivitis represents a risk factor for periodontal attachment loss and for tooth loss.
Prince Philip Dental Hospital, Comprehensive Dental Care, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China. nplang@dial.eunet.ch
Niklaus P
NP
Lang
Marc A
MA
Schätzle
Harald
H
Löe
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003773:Dental Plaque / Q000150:complications / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D018450:Disease Progression; D005891:Gingivitis / Q000150:complications* / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology; D054884:Host-Pathogen Interactions; D006801:Humans; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D017622:Periodontal Attachment Loss / Q000209:etiology*; D010512:Periodontal Index; D010518:Periodontitis / Q000209:etiology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D016388:Tooth Loss / Q000209:etiology*; D055815:Young Adult