Relationship of "bleeding on probing" and "gingival index bleeding" as clinical parameters of gingival inflammation

Abstract Bleeding on probing (BOP) and the gingival index have been used to clinically characterize the degree of gingival inflammation. It is, however, unclear to what extent these parameters correlate to each other and to probing pocket depth (PD). The purpose of this clinical study was to evaluate the association between BOP and GI bleeding (scores of 2 and 3), as well as the relationship of these variables to PD, in a group of patients presenting with naturally-occurring gingivitis. Based on screening examinations of 125 subjects with at least 20 teeth, no more than 4 sites with PD over 6 mm, a BOP frequency of 30% or greater, and no systemic condition that would influence the inflammatory response, were selected. 2 weeks after screening they were examined at 6 sites per tooth for plaque index, GI, PD and BOP. A standardized pressure sensitive probe (Florida Probe) with 20 g probing force was used for BOP and PD measurements. In this population, means of 40.9% (S.E.= 1.36) BOP sites and 35.3% (S.E, = 1.81) GI bleeding sites per patient were found. A total of 20,008 sites ranging in PD up to 5.9 mm were evaluated; however, the majority of sites (19,723, 98.6%) presented with <4 mm PD. When sites were evaluated, BOP demonstrated a positive correlation with PD, whereas GI bleeding correlated with PH. For sites characterized by the absence of BOP as well as the absence of GI bleeding (scores 0 and 1), the highest % of agreement between the 2 indices (77.7%) was found in shallow sites (0.1–2 mm). In contrast, when sites presenting with both BOP and GI bleeding were analyzed, the highest % of agreement (85,4%) was found for sites with PD >4.0 mm. In this gingivitis population group, it appears that BOP and GI bleeding evaluate distinct inflammatory1 conditions of the gingival tissues, and the relationship between the 2 clinical parameters may vary according to PD at the individual site examined.     

Effects of estradiol and progesterone on Bacteroides melaninogenicus and Bacteroides gingivalis.

Bacteroides melaninogenicus subsp. intermedius increases in the subgingival microflora during pregnancy. These studies evaluated direct interactions between hormonal steroids and oral Bacteroides species. Resting cell suspensions of pure cultures of plaque organisms were incubated anaerobically with [14C]estradiol and [14C]progesterone. Uptake of labeled compound per microgram of bacterial protein was determined by thin-layer chromatography and liquid scintillation counting. B. melaninogenicus subsp. intermedius and B. melaninogenicus subsp. melaninogenicus took up 2.6 x 10(-4) to 5.4 x 10(-4) mumol of estradiol or progesterone per microgram of cell protein. Minimal steroid uptake was observed with B. gingivalis and five other organisms. Uptake of steroids by B. melaninogenicus subsp. intermedius was temperature dependent and resulted in a labeled product as detected on thin-layer chromatography. Growth curves indicated that intermedius and melaninogenicus subspecies of B. melaninogenicus but not B. gingivalis could substitute progesterone or estradiol for vitamin K, an essential growth factor. Growth of B. melaninogenicus subsp. intermedius in steroids was concentration dependent. Addition of fumarate to resting cells of B. melaninogenicus subspecies as well as B. gingivalis increased steroid uptake by 70 to 500% and resulted in the gas-liquid chromatographic detection of succinate. Cultures given fumarate alone or steroids alone produced no succinate. Steroids appeared to directly interact with the fumarate reductase system and foster the growth of B. melaninogenicus subsp. intermedius. This interaction may be of ecological significance.     

Microbiology of subgingival plaque from children with localized prepubertal periodontitis

Localized prepubertal periodontitis has been described as a host-defect mediated form of bacterially induced periodontitis, with an early onset and rapid progression around a few teeth in children prior to puberty. To further our understanding of the etiology of this disease, we have examined the microbiological components of subgingival dental plaque in 9 children with localized prepubertal periodontitis to determine if patterns of putative pathogens existed, and have compared these results with those obtained from 4 children with no periodontitis. Subgingival plaque samples were plated onto a selective medium for Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans and onto a non-selective medium for anaerobes, and the predominant cultivable microbiota of 2 sites per child was determined. The subgingival microbiota of children with localized prepubertal periodontitis clearly differs from non-diseased children in the detection of high levels of several suspected pathogens, including A. actinomycetemcomitans, Bacteroides intermedius, Eikenella corrodens, and Capnocytophaga sputigena. These putative pathogens were found in various combinations. These findings suggest that localized prepubertal periodontitis is associated with specific subgingival bacteria which are generally not found in children without periodontitis.     

Is an ultrasound assessment of gestational age at the first antenatal visit of value? A randomised clinical trial

OBJECTIVES: To assess the efficacy of an ultrasound scan at the first antenatal visit. DESIGN: Randomised clinical trial. SETTING: Women's and Children's tertiary level hospital, Adelaide, Australia. POPULATION: Six hundred and forty-eight women attending for their first antenatal visit at less than 17 weeks of gestation who had no previous ultrasound scan in the pregnancy, who were expected to give birth at the hospital, and for whom there was no indication for an ultrasound at their first visit. METHODS: Eligible consenting women were enrolled by telephone randomisation into either the ultrasound at first visit group, who had an ultrasound at the time of their first antenatal visit, or the control group in whom no ultrasound assessment was done at their first antenatal visit. Both groups of women completed a questionnaire at the end of the first visit on their feelings towards the pregnancy and anxiety levels. Data were collected on details of any ultrasound assessments, including the 18 to 20 weeks morphology scan, and pregnancy outcome. All primary analyses were on an intention-to-treat basis. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The number of women who needed adjustment in dates of 10 days or more on the basis of their 18 to 20 weeks ultrasound morphology scan, who were booked for their morphology scan at sub-optimal gestations, who had a repeat of their maternal serum screening test, or who felt worried about their pregnancy at the end of the first antenatal visit. RESULTS: Fewer women (9%) in the ultrasound at first visit group needed adjustment of their expected date of delivery as a result of the 18 to 20 week ultrasound, compared with 18% of women in the control group (RR 0.52, 95% CI 0.34-0.79; P = 0.002). The number of women who had the 18 to 20 week ultrasound assessment timed suboptimally was similar to that in the control group (16% vs. 21%), as was the number of women who had a repeat blood sample taken for maternal serum screening (6% vs. 6%). Fewer women in the ultrasound at first visit group reported feeling worried about their pregnancy (RR 0.80, 95% CI 0.65-0.99; P = 0.04) or not feeling relaxed about their pregnancy (RR 0.73, 95% CI 0.56-0.96; P = 0.02), compared with women in the control group. CONCLUSIONS: A routine ultrasound assessment for dating offered to women at the first antenatal visit provides more precise estimates of gestational age and reduces the need to adjust the estimate of the date of delivery in mid-gestation. Women who had an ultrasound at the first visit reported more positive feelings about their pregnancy, compared with women in the control group at that time.     

Cervical surveillance as an alternative to elective cervical cerclage for pregnancy management of suspected cervical incompetence

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to compare the outcome of pregnancies among patients with suspected cervical incompetence treated either by elective cervical cerclage or an alternative management program involving cervical surveillance. DESIGN, SETTING AND METHODS: A prospective cohort study was performed in two groups of patients at risk of cervical incompetence with singleton gestations attending the Royal Women's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia, from 1996 to 2000. The first group was managed by their obstetric carers with an elective cerclage, while the second group was managed conservatively as part of a cervical surveillance program offered to patients attending the Department of Perinatal Medicine for pregnancy care. This program consists of weekly visits from 16 weeks' gestation and involves alternating transvaginal ultrasound assessment of cervical morphometry with cervico-vaginal bacteriology and fetal fibronectin swabs. Empiric insertion of a cerclage is undertaken when there is evidence of significant cervical shortening (cervical canal <2.5 cm in length at 相似文献