The benefit of molecular microbiological assays in optimal monitoring of periodontal disease. A retrospective study

Periodontal disease is among the most frequent pathologies worldwide, with multiple cons equences to the quality of daily patient life.Aim: To assess the prevalence and the DNA load of etiologic agents in selected patients with periodontal disease.Materials and methods: 55 saliva samples from periodontal disease patients were analyzed by multiplex Real Time PCR, using specific primers for: Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Treponema denticola.The positive sampled were further analysed for the evaluation the antibiotic susceptibility to Clindamycin, Metronidazole, Amoxicillin, Doxycycline, Ciprofloxacin, and Clarithromycin.Results: The most frequent bacteria detected were Treponema denticola, in samples from 47 patients (85.5%), followed by Porphyromonas gingivalis, in 43 patients (78.2%) and Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, in 5 patients (9.1%).Besides these 3 periodontal pathogens, one patient was positive for Tannerella forsythia, Prevotella intermedia, Eubacterium nodatum and Capnocytophaga gingivalis.Conclusions: The microbiologic diagnosis using sensitive molecular assay is compulsory for modern and optimal periodontal diseases assessment.