Biomarker levels in gingival crevicular fluid of generalized aggressive periodontitis patients after non-surgical periodontal treatment

The aim of this study was to assess the effects of non-surgical periodontal treatment on gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) cytokines in patients with generalized aggressive periodontitis (GAgP), in relation to clinical parameters. Data were obtained from 16 GAgP patients and 15 periodontally healthy controls. Periodontal parameters and GCF biomarker levels were evaluated at baseline and repeated 3 and 6 months after treatment for GAgP subjects. Moderate and deep pocket sites were analyzed separately. The amount of interleukin (IL)-1 beta, IL-9, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha, platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF-bb), and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) were measured using a highly specific and sensitive multiplex bead immunoassay. At baseline, cytokine levels in the moderate and deep pocket sites of GAgP patients were higher than those of the healthy control sites. In GAgP group, periodontal treatment led to improvement in all examined clinical parameters and resulted in a statistically significant reduction in the total amounts of IL-1 beta, VEGF, and TNF-alpha, in comparison to baseline, already 3 months after therapy in both moderate and deep pocket sites and of PDGF-bb in deep sites (p < 0.01). At the concentration level, only IL-1 beta and VEGF were affected. Non-surgical treatment of GAgP provided significant clinical benefits leading to a marked decrease in the GCF levels of some pro-inflammatory and pro-angiogenic cytokines, but not of IL-9 and PDGF-bb. Although the periodontal therapy successfully decreased clinical signs of inflammation, the GCF levels of some inflammatory cytokines were still elevated.