Cytological analysis of the periodontal pocket in patients with aggressive periodontitis and chronic periodontitis.
BACKGROUND
Oral exfoliative cytology includes the study and interpretation of the features cells exfoliated from the oral mucosa. The aim of this study was to analyze cytological changes in the periodontal pocket of patients with different clinical stages of aggressive periodontitis (AP) and chronic periodontitis (CP).


METHODS
Patients aged 24-54 years, of whom 41 were diagnosed with AP, 40 with CP, sub-classified as mild, moderate and severe periodontitis, and 40 healthy individuals who were the control group. Samples of the epithelium of the periodontal pocket were taken for the cytological study.


RESULTS
Superficial and intermediate cell values were significantly greater in patients with AP than in patients with CP or the control group. Histiocyte number was higher in patients with CP than in those with AP, and differed significantly in both types of periodontitis compared to the control group. There were significant differences in polymorphonuclear neutrophil leukocytes when both types of periodontitis were compared to the control group. Microbial flora was statistically higher in patients with CP, and there were differences between patients with periodontitis and the control group.


CONCLUSIONS
The cytological study demonstrated that patients with AP had greater tissue damage, shown by the increase in intermediate and superficial cells of the epithelium of the periodontal pocket compared to the group of healthy subjects and to a lesser extent, to patients with CP. Only superficial cells made it possible to differentiate the sub-stages of the disease.
Department of Periodontology, Faculty of Dentistry, National University of Tucumán, Argentina.
E Castro
EC
Cecilia
Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Dentistry, National University of Tucumán, Argentina.
A Koss
AK
Myriam
Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Dentistry, National University of Tucumán, Argentina.
E López
EL
María
Exfoliative cytology; gingivo-periodontal diseases; histiocytes; intermediate cells; periodontal pocket; surface cell