ABSTRACT
Though there are literature indicating the bone loss due to alcohol consumption, studies on the association between ethanol consumption and periodontal breakdown in animals are either scarce or have provided conflicting results. Here, we investigated the effects of chronic alcohol exposure from adolescence to adulthood on the alveolar bone in rats. Wistar rats were exposed to ethanol (6.5 g/kg/day) in a solution of 22.5% (w/v) or distilled water (control) by gavage from 35 days of age (adolescent) until 90 days (adulthood). Evaluation of the bone loss was performed using scanning electronic microscopy, in which the distances between the cement-enamel junction and the alveolar bone crest from the palatal side of the first molar mandibular were measured. The measurements obtained were tabulated and analyzed using Student’s t-test. Alcohol-treated group revealed greater bone loss in comparison to the control group. These findings indicate that heavy chronic alcohol exposure from adolescent to adulthood can induce alveolar bone loss in rats associated to absence of periodontitis.
Subject(s)
Age Factors , Alveolar Bone Loss/chemically induced , Alveolar Bone Loss/drug effects , Alveolar Process/drug effects , Alveolar Process/pathology , Alveolar Process/ultrastructure , Analysis of Variance , Animals , Body Weight/drug effects , Central Nervous System Depressants/administration & dosage , Central Nervous System Depressants/toxicity , Ethanol/administration & dosage , Ethanol/toxicity , Mandibular Diseases/chemically induced , Mandibular Diseases/diagnosis , Microscopy, Electron, Scanning , Rats , Rats, Wistar , Time FactorsABSTRACT
A total of 21 albino adult male rats were used in this study. 15 rats were classified into 3 study groups, 5 rats each, while the remaining 6 rats were used as a control, 2 for each study group. Group I: 20% ethanol was taken for 3 months. Group II: 20% ethanol was taken for 4 months. Group III: 20% ethanol was taken for 7 months. The results revealed that alcohol was responsible for osteoblastic dysfunction which resulted in osteoporosis. Osteoporosis appeared in the form of thin bone trabeculae with hypocellularity. Also, X-ray films showed that the abuse of alcohol cause diminished bone mineral density. These results were progressively increased from group I, in which rats were taking 20% ethanol for 3 months to group III, in which rats were taken ethanol for 7 months. From this study, it can be concluded that the dentists should be very careful during even minor surgical operation in the jaws of alcoholic patients to avoid the probability of jaw fracture as a result of osteoporosis