Aim
Periodontitis
Conclusions
Subgingival debridement reduces the risk of aggravated platelet activation and therefore might potentially diminish subsequent diseases such as cardiovascular disease in periodontal patients.
Methods
In a prospective controlled therapeutic trial, 52 patients were enrolled and randomly selected for periodontal treatment or monitored without treatment for 3 months. Patient blood was analysed by flow cytometry for platelet activation markers and by light transmission aggregometry for platelet aggregation in response to pro-thrombotic stimuli.
Results
In this study, platelet activation in the control group aggravated over the observation period of 3 months, whereas patients that underwent periodontal treatment showed unchanged levels of platelet activation, measured by surface expression of CD62P, CD40L, generation of reactive oxygen production, activation of GPIIb/IIIa and fibrinogen binding. Moreover, platelet turnover, measured by platelet RNA content and platelet aggregation in response to collagen, differed significantly between patients that were treated and those who were untreated. Conclusions: Subgingival debridement reduces the risk of aggravated platelet activation and therefore might potentially diminish subsequent diseases such as cardiovascular disease in periodontal patients.