Corticosteroid therapy and periodontal disease.

In the present investigation, the frequency and severity of periodontal disease was assessed in a group of patients with multiple sclerosis receiving corticosteroid hormone therapy for neurological disease. Age-matched patients with multiple sclerosis but without hormone therapy as well as healthy subjects served as controls. Individuals suffering from multiple sclerosis or polyneuropathies were selected from a pool of patients who were under treatment at the Department of Neurology, The Central Hospital of Kuopio, Finland. 27 individuals were identified who had received more than 1.5 g prednisone over a 1-4 year period. The average amount of steroid given to these patients was 3.5 g. 26 individuals also suffering from neurologic disease had received no or only negligable amounts of hormone therapy and were used as diseased controls. Another control group comprised age- and sex-matched healthy individuals from the city of Kuopio. The dental examination which was performed by one dentist comprised assessments of the following parameters: oral hygiene status, gingival conditions, probing depth, gingival recession and height of the alveolar bone. The findings clearly demonstrated that patients with neurological disease who received corticosteroid therapy had the same frequency of gingivitis as non-treated diseased controls. Furthermore, data describing probing depth, gingival recession and height of the alveolar bone revealed that there was no difference regarding the frequency and severity of periodontal disease between the 2 groups of neurological diseased patients. It was concluded that corticosteroid therapy maintained over 1-4 years had no obvious influence on clinical parameters of periodontal disease in patients suffering from neurological disease.