Comparison of Subgingival Temperature between Smokers and Non-smokers

Abstract

The physiological mechanism of periodontal destruction by smoking is not clear. Subgingival temperature (ST) was compared in maxillary anterior teeth between 46 smokers and 53 non-smokers in sites with similar probing depth. The effects on tooth number, the plaque index and gingival index scores on ST were not significant (p=0.6835, 0.6464 and 0.0730, respectively). Non-smokers showed higher ST in deeper pocket (p=0.0033), while no significant association was found in smokers (p=0.2807). ST at sites with probing depth of 3mm, 4mm and 5mm was significantly hihger (p=0.0048, 0.0129 and 0.0457, respectively) in smokers (35.2±0.7℃, 35.5±0.6℃ and 35.7±0.8℃, respectively) than in non-smokers (34.3±0.9℃, 34.6±1.1℃ and 34.9±1.1℃, respectively). No significant difference in ST was found between somkers (35.6±0.4℃) and non-smokers (35.8±1.1℃) in sites with probing depth of 6mm (p=0.2627). These results indicate that ST was higher in somkers than in non-smokers in shallow pocket, suggesting that increased ST may be involved in the development of smoking-related periodontal disease before and/or at earlier stage of destruction.