Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Jan 26:19:25-31.
doi: 10.3290/j.ohpd.b875517.

Streptococci in the Subgingival Biofilm and Periodontal Therapy

Holger Jentsch, Arne C Rodloff, Maria Kristina Gerweck, Catalina-Suzana Stingu

Streptococci in the Subgingival Biofilm and Periodontal Therapy

Holger Jentsch et al. Oral Health Prev Dent. .

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of this study was to verify how the prevalence of viridans-streptococci is changed by two appointments of professional prophylaxis and after the subgingival instrumentation via scaling and root planing (SRP). Material and Methods: Samples of the subgingival biofilm were collected from 19 individuals with periodontitis receiving two appointments of professional prophylaxis and SRP before and after the treatment procedures and the presence of viridans-streptococci was analysed by microbiological cultivation. Non-parametric statistical testing using Friedman/Wilcoxon tests and chi-square testing was used for statistical analysis. Results: No statistically significant changes over time were found for the mutans-group. The prevalence of Streptococcus mitis decreased after two appointments of professional prophylaxis (p = 0.013). The prevalence of S. mitis decreased again after SRP (p <0.001). The prevalence of Streptococcus anginosus decreased after two appointments of professional prophylaxis (p = 0.002). After SRP five positive results for S. anginosus were detected (p = 0.026). For Streptococcus oralis and Streptococcus gordonii tendencies to statistical significance were found. The number of positive results for S. oralis increased after the first appointment of professional oral prophylaxis (p = 0.055). The number of positive results for S. gordonii increased after the first appointment of professional oral prophylaxis (p = 0.055). Conclusion: The step-wise periodontal therapy influences the prevalence of viridans-streptococci, especially S. mitis and S. anginosus. No tremendous increase of streptococci especially related to the carious process occurs in the subgingival biofilm. Clinical Relevance: The study reveals knowledge on changes of the composition of the subgingival biofilm due to different steps of periodontal therapy.

Keywords: periodontitis; professional dental prophylaxis; subgingival biofilm; subgingival instrumentation; viridans-streptococci.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

References

    1. Abranches J, Zeng L, Kajfasz JK, Palmer SR, Chakraborty B, Wen ZT, et al. Biology of Oral Streptococci. Microbiol Spectr. 2018:6. doi: 10.1128/microbiolspec.GPP3-0042-2018. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Amaral Cda S, da Silva-Boghossian CM, Leão AT, Colombo AP. Evaluation of the subgingival microbiota of alcoholic and non-alcoholic individuals. Dent. 2011;39:729–738. - PubMed
    1. Artese HP, de Sousa CO, Torres MC, Silva-Boghossian CM, Colombo AP. Effect of non-surgical periodontal treatment on the subgingival microbiota of patients with chronic kidney disease. Braz Oral Res. 2012;26:366–372. - PubMed
    1. Banas JA, Drake DR. Are the mutans streptococci still considered relevant to understanding the microbial etiology of dental caries? BMC Oral Health. 2018;18:129. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bascones A, Gamonal J, Gomez M, Silva A, Gonzalez MA. New knowledge of the pathogenesis of periodontal disease. Quintessence Int. 2004;35:706–16. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources