Abstract
Purpose: To apply salivary proteins to the diagnosis of periodontal disease in partial denture supporting teeth, total protein concentrations and protein fractions in whole saliva were compared among dentulous subjects, edentulous subjects and periodontitis patients.
Materials and Methods: Eighty-five subjects/patients in total were studied, who consisted of 52 dentulous subjects with diagnosed normal periodontal tissue, 18 edentulous subjects using complete dentures and 15 patients with diagnosed periodontal disease. Total protein concentration in whole saliva was measured using dot blotting-silver staining, and protein fractions were analyzed using cellulose acetate membrane electrophoresis and silver staining. Based on the results obtained and some oral cavity examination items, the correlation between the periodontal pocket depth and the number of residual teeth was studied.
Results: Total protein concentration was highest in the group of periodontal disease patients and significantly different from that in the group of dentulous subjects (p<0.01). The percentage area and concentrations of albumin fraction were largest in periodontal patients, followed by dentulous subjects and edentulous subjects in this order. A significant difference (p<0.01) was observed in albumin concentration between periodontal patients and edentulous or dentulous subjects. Concentrations of immunoglobulin A and γ-globulin were significantly higher in periodontal patients than in dentulous subjects (p<0.01). In addition, among oral cavity examination items, the total periodontal pocket depth, the number of residual teeth and the number of teeth with periodontal pocket depth of over 4mm were significantly correlated with the percentage area of albumin fraction or albumin concentration.
Conclusions: Albumin concentration in whole saliva was suggested to be most effective for diagnosing periodontal disease in supporting teeth.
