Clinical evaluation of periodontal pathogen levels by real-time polymerase chain reaction in peri-implantitis patients

• Published in: International journal of implant dentistry Vol. 7; no. 1; p. 105
• Main Authors: Ito, Taichi, Mori, Gentaro, Oda, Yukari, Hirano, Tomoki, Sasaki, Hodaka, Honma, Shinya, Furuya, Yoshitaka, Yajima, Yasutomo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 06.10.2021; Springer Nature B.V; SpringerOpen
• Subjects: Bacteria; Clinical research; Dental materials; Dentistry; Diagnosis; Medicine; Microbiology; Pathogens; Peri-implantitis; Polymerase chain reaction; Real time; Risk analysis; Clinical research; Peri-implantitis; Diagnosis; Microbiology
• ISSN: 2198-4034; 2198-4034
• DOI: 10.1186/s40729-021-00385-0

Objective The mechanisms underlying the onset and progression of peri-implantitis are similar to those of periodontitis, and the causative bacteria are believed to similar. Previous studies support an association between peri-implantitis and periodontal pathogen. Thus, we investigated the bacterial flora of peri-implantitis patients in comparison to those of healthy implant and periodontitis patients. Materials and methods In total, 70 patients visiting Tokyo Dental College Chiba Hospital were divided into four groups: healthy, periodontitis, healthy implant, and peri-implantitis. For each group, the following five periodontal pathogens were detected using real-time polymerase chain reaction: Porphyromonas gingivalis , Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans , Tannerella forsythia , Treponema denticola , and Prevotella intermedia . Results The average copy number of total bacteria was significantly higher in the periodontitis group than in the other groups. P. gingivalis was detected in the periodontitis and peri-implantitis groups at levels as high as 18.92% and 12.29%, respectively, and P. intermedia was found in the peri-implantitis group at a rate of 2.06%. Nevertheless, periodontal pathogens were generally detected at lower levels in the peri-implantitis group than in the periodontitis group. Conclusion We found lower bacterial counts in the peri-implantitis group relative to the periodontitis group. Our results suggest that the peri-implant tissue is less resistant to bacteria, so even a small number of bacteria can be a risk factor for peri-implantitis and the causative agent of peri-implantitis can be bacteria other than periodontal pathogen.