Periodontitis and Tooth Loss Have Negative Systemic Impact on Circulating Progenitor Cell Levels: A Clinical Study

Current Evidence of Natural Agents in Oral and Periodontal Health

Oral and periodontal diseases, chewing disorders, and many destructive inflammatory diseases of the supporting tissues of the teeth are usually caused by an imbalance between host defense and environmental factors like smoking, poor nutrition, and a high percentage of periodontopathogenic bacteria. For these reasons, it is important also to focus attention on plaque control and also on improving host resistance through smoking and stress reduction, and a healthy diet. During the last decades, the importance of micronutrients has been extensively reviewed, and it was concluded that the prevention and treatment of periodontitis should include correct daily nutrition and a correct balance between antioxidants, probiotics, natural agents, vitamin D, and calcium. Recently, there has been growing interest in the literature on the impact of nutraceutical dietary aliments on oral and general health. This Special Issue provides a current and thoughtful perspective on the relationship of diet and natural agents on oral and periodontal diseases through a correct clinical approach with the last and most important evidence that may determine good oral conditions and high quality of life.

Antibiotics and Antimicrobials for Treatment of the Oral Microbiota: Myths and Facts in Research and Clinical Practice

In the dental field, the most common oral diseases include periodontitis, apical periodontitis, abscesses, phlegmons and pulpits, all of which are determined by the same aetiological factor, bacterial infections. For these reasons, it is important to choose the right approach through a target antibiotic therapy against oral bacteria. More specifically, during periodontitis, antibiotics are used, often in association with periodontal debridement, to reduce disease-associated periodontopathogens. However, international guidelines are not unanimous in recommending the use of local and/or systemic antimicrobials to reduce infection by oral bacteria, especially in cases in which there is a danger of spreading systemic infection such as cellulitis, diffuse swelling, and abscesses. The lack of consensus is mainly due to the side effects of antibiotic therapy in dentistry, maybe due to recent scientific evidence regarding the development of bacterial resistance to antibiotics. Therefore, the purpose of this editorial is to analyze the therapeutic effects of antibiotics against the main forms of oral and periodontal diseases, and whether there is a significant clinical benefit, especially in the long term, of antimicrobial therapies in dentistry. The most recent evidence regarding antimicrobial agents will also be discussed.

Analysis of Endothelin-1 Concentrations in Individuals with Periodontitis

Endothelin 1 (ET-1) has been shown to have a key role in homeostasis and function of endothelium and maybe fundamental in the relationship between coronary heart disease (CHD) and periodontitis. In this trial, we assessed the influence on serum and salivary ET-1 levels of gingival health, CHD, periodontitis, or a combination of periodontitis-CHD. Clinical and periodontal parameters, were collected from periodontitis patients (n = 34), CHD patients (n = 34), periodontitis + CHD patients (n = 34), and from healthy patients (n = 34) together with saliva and serum samples. The median concentrations of salivary and serum ET-1 were significantly higher in the CHD patients [serum: 1.4(1.1-1.6) pg/ml; saliva 1.2 (0.9-1.6) µmol/g, p < 0.01] and in the periodontitis + CHD patients [serum: 1.7 (1.2-21.8) pg/ml; salivary 1.4(1-1.6) µmol/g, p < 0.001] respect to periodontitis and control patients. Through a univariate regression analysis, c-reactive protein (CRP) and CHD (both p < 0.001) and periodontitis (p = 0.029) were statistically correlated with ET-1 in serum. The multivariate regression analysis demonstrated that only CRP was the statistically predictor of ET-1 in serum(p < 0.001). The multivariate regression analysis in saliva demonstrated that, regarding ET-1 levels the only predictor were CRP (p < 0.001) and total cholesterol (p = 0.042). The present study evidenced that subjects with CHD and periodontitis plus CHD had higher serum and salivary levels of ET-1 compared to subjects with periodontitis and healthy controls. Moreover, only CRP remained a major predictor of increased ET-1 concentrations in both serum and saliva.