Periodontal disease and women's health.

BACKGROUND: Periodontal disease (PD) is a multifactorial inflammatory condition in which inappropriate interaction between the host immune response and specific groups of bacterial pathogens leads to destruction of connective and bone tissues supporting the tooth. Dissemination of pathogens, toxins, and immune complexes from and to periodontal lesions is at the basis of the increasingly recognized association between PD and various systemic diseases (SDs). Considering the growing attention of the medical community to "gender medicine", this review focuses on the association between PD and six systemic conditions heavily impacting women's health, with the aim of providing evidence in support of a joint effort between physicians and dentists to improve clinical management of these conditions. METHODS: We considered systematic reviews, meta-analyses and narrative reviews evaluating all possible associations between periodontitis, systemic diseases and women. RESULTS: Gender prevalence for PD is discordant, but the literature strongly supports an association between PD and female infertility and adverse pregnancy outcomes. Moreover, PD is bidirectionally linked to several systemic diseases characterized by an established female gender bias, i.e. osteoporosis (OP), cardiovascular diseases (CVD), autoimmunity, Alzheimer's disease (AD) and cancer. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, the literature data reviewed here provides a strong foundation for further characterization of molecular and microbial drivers of PD and of several female-prevalent systemic diseases, highlighting the possible importance of a good oral condition in preventing or attenuating women's systemic diseases.

Efficacy of the ND:YAG laser therapy on EBV and HSV1 contamination in periodontal pockets.

AIM: The aim of this retrospective multicenter study was to verify the efficacy of Nd:YAG laser in the treatment of periodontal pockets infected by Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) and Herpes Simplex Virus 1 (HSV1). METHODS: Subgingival plaque samples of 291 Italian periodontal patients were analyzed by Real Time PCR to evaluate the frequency of both viruses before and after Nd:YAG laser-assisted periodontal treatment. RESULTS: Before treatment, EBV and HSV1 were observed in 29.9% and in 3.8% of periodontal patients respectively, while co-infection with both viruses was detected in 1.7% of cases. Periodontal Nd:YAG laser treatment ("Periodontal Biological Laser-Assisted Therapy", PERIOBLAST) produced statistical significant benefits, especially in EBV periodontal infection: 78.2% of EBV positive patients became EBV-negative following treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Results of this preliminary study highlight that EBV is found in periodontal pockets more frequently than HSV1, supporting the theory of the potential role of EBV in the onset and progression of periodontal disease. Moreover, our data showed that Nd:YAG laser-assisted periodontal treatment (Perioblast) is also effective in case of viral infection, validating evidences that it represents a successful alternative approach to traditional periodontal protocols.

Cariogram outcome after 90 days of oral treatment with Streptococcus salivarius M18 in children at high risk for dental caries: results of a randomized, controlled study.

Dental caries is the most common chronic disease of childhood. Cariogram is a well-recognized algorithm-based software program based on different caries-related risk factors and intended to aid clinicians in performing more objective and consistent dental caries risk assessments. This type of approach precedes the diagnosis of caries and allows the dentist to identify at-risk patients and then take appropriate preventive measures before caries develop further. One of the etiological factors favoring the development of dental caries is the mutans streptococci. These acidogenic dental plaque inhabitants can be effectively antagonized by the activity of bacteriocins released by the probiotic Streptococcus salivarius M18 (salivarius M18). Moreover, salivarius M18 after colonizing the human oral mucosa produces the enzymes dextranase and urease that are able to counteract plaque formation and saliva acidity, respectively. Seventy-six subjects at high risk of dental caries were randomized and then either treated or not treated for 90 days with an oral formulation containing the oral probiotic salivarius M18 (Carioblis(®)). The results indicate that the use of salivarius M18 increases the chances of avoiding new dental caries development in children, and its application could be proposed as a new tool in the dentist's armory to be adopted in subjects considered at high risk on the basis of their Cariogram outcome.