Immunoregulation of Periodontal Diseases

Periodontal diseases are a group of diseases that affect 15% of the population and in the absence of treatment causes tooth loss. Periodontal lesions are characterized mainly by strong inflammation and hyper-vascularization. Search in blood cells and inflammatory markers attempts to explain the etiological-pathogenetic mechanisms. Innate immunity can be assessed by qualitative and quantitative analysis of blood phagocytes, natural killer cells, complement, proteins of inflammation and cytokines. Current data from the literature on this subject give contradictory results and the comparison of studies are difficult because the diversity of the populations studied, evaluated cells and the methods used. The aim of the study was to evaluate the innate immunity of patients with periodontal disease and compare it with a group of patients without periodontal disease. The previous conclusions of study focused on the difference in the general immunological parameters in healthy patients and patients suffering from periodontal disease, current advances in immunology have helped to develop new markers on functional status of blood phagocytes all through their anti-microbial action. The adhesion, migration, phagocytosis and bactericidal capacity are assessed and quantified using recognized tests and practiced regularly in analytical laboratory. The identification of altered immunological parameters in patients with periodontal disease would better understand the natural history of these diseases and may lead to new diagnostic criteria, prognostic and therapeutic.

In practice, the project brings together immunological skills (functional analysis of cells and membrane markers) and dental (patient selection and diagnosis of periodontal disease) for further testing applicable to many patients likely to develop periodontal disease.