Crevicular fluid prostaglandin E2 levels in periodontitis-resistant and periodontitis-susceptible adults.

The aim of this cross-sectional study was to determine concentrations of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) in gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) in a cohort of periodontal disease-resistant (PDR) adults with chronic gingivitis but with minimal evidence of bone loss, and to compare these data with GCF-PGE2 levels in patients with untreated chronic adult periodontal disease (CAPD). 20 PDR and 35 CAPD subjects with mean (+/-se) ages 52.4 (+/-2.9) and 43.7 (+/-1.2) years respectively, were recruited. GCF was sampled from 6 sites in each PDR subject and 4 sites in each CAPD subject. The GCF-PGE2 concentrations were determined by enzyme immunoassay (Assay Designs). Whole mouth medians of site-specific GCF-PGE2 concentrations were calculated for each subject. The means of the median GCF-PGE2 concentrations were: PDR 54.94+/-4.06 ng/ml; CAPD 41.57+/-2.91 ng/ml (p=0.009). We hypothesise that the higher concentrations of PGE2 in the PDR group may be associated with the proliferating pocket epithelia of the chronic gingivitis. In the CAPD cohort, there were no differences in GCF-PGE2 concentrations between subgroups of smokers (n=13), ex-smokers (n=11) and non smokers (n=11). In the PDR cohort, 19/20 subjects were non-smokers.