Anti-inflammatory effect of the Salvia sclarea L. ethanolic extract on lipopolysaccharide-induced periodontitis in rats.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Salvia sclarea L., clary, is an aromatic plant traditionally used in folk medicine for the treatment of various diseases and conditions. Although it has been primarily used as a stomachic, there are data on traditional use of S. sclarea as an agent against gingivitis, stomatitis and aphthae. AIM OF THE STUDY: The aim of the study was to examine the effect of the S. sclarea ethanolic extract on the lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced periodontitis in rats from the immunological and histopathological standpoint. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Periodontal inflammation in rats was induced by repeated injections of LPS from Escherichia coli into the interdental papilla between the first and second right maxillary molars. The extract was administered two times a day by oral gavage (200mg/kg body weight). The inflammatory status was assessed by the measurements of proinflammatory cytokines interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) of gingival tissues and descriptive analysis of histological sections of periodontium. Chemical characterization of the extract was determined using high performance liquid chromatography system (HPLC). Antioxidant activity of the extract was estimated with two in vitro complementary methods: 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl and ß-carotene/linoleic acid models. RESULTS: Treatment with S. sclarea extract, compared to the untreated group of the rats, significantly diminished the process of inflammation decreasing the levels of IL-1ß, IL-6 and TNF-α, reducing the gingival tissue lesions and preserving bone alveolar resorption. Considerably smaller number of inflammatory cells and larger number of fibroblasts was noticed. The administration of the extract three days earlier did not have significant preventive effects. Rosmarinic acid was the predominant compound in the extract. The extract showed strong antioxidant effects in both test systems. CONCLUSIONS: S. sclarea extract manifested anti-inflammatory effect in LPS-induced periodontitis suggesting that it may have a role as a therapeutic agent in periodontal diseases. Having in mind that overproduction of reactive oxygen species is connected to periodontitis, the strong antioxidant capacity may be contributable to anti-inflammatory properties of the extract.

Determination of vertical dimension of occlusion by using the phonetic vowel "O" and "E".

BACKGROUND/AIM: The vertical dimension of occlusion is a very important parameter for proper reconstruction of the relationship between the jaws. The literature describes many methods for its finding, from the simple, easily applicable clinically, to quite complicated, with the use of one or more devices for determination. The aim of this study was to examine the possibility of determining the vertical dimension of occlusion using the vocals "O" and "E" with the control of values obtained by applying cognitive functions. METHODS: This investigation was performed with the two groups of patients. The first group consisted of 50 females and 50 males, aged 18 to 30 years. In this group the distance between the reference points (on top of the nose and chin) was measured in the position of the mandible in the vertical dimension of occlusion, the vertical dimension at rest and the pronunciation of the words "OLO" and "ELE". Checking the correctness of the particular value for the word "OLO" was also performed by the phonetic method with the application of cognitive exercises when the patients counted from 89 to 80. The obtained difference in the average values in determining the vertical dimension of occlusion and the "OLO" and "ELE" in the first group was used as the reference for determining the vertical dimension of occlusion in the second group of patients. The second group comprised of 31 edentulous persons (14 females and 17 males), aged from 54 to 85 years who had been made a complete denture. RESULTS: The average value obtained for the vertical dimension of rest for the entire sample was 2.16 mm, for the word "OLO" for the entire sample was 5.51 mm and for the word "ELE" for the entire sample was 7.47 mm. There was no statistically significant difference between the genders for the value of the vertical dimension at rest, "ELE" and "OLO". There was a statistically significant difference between the values f or the vertical dimension at rest, "OLO" and "ELE" for both genders. There was a statistically significant correlation between the value for the vertical dimension at rest, "OLO" and "ELE", for both groups of subjects. CONCLUSION: Determining the vertical dimension of occlusion requires 5.5 mm subtraction from the position of the mandible in pronunciation of the word "OLO" or 7.5 mm in pronunciation of the word "ELE".