No abstract

Calcium sulfate (CS) has enjoyed a longer history of clinical use than most currently available biomaterials. It is well-tolerated when used to fill bone defects and undergoes rapid and complete resorption without eliciting a significant inflammatory response. The raw material from which it is made is relatively inexpensive and abundant. In addition, CS can be used as a vehicle to deliver antibiotics, pharmacologic agents, and growth factors. It has found wide use in orthopedics and dentistry, and has been used in a variety of clinical applications, including the periodontal defect repair, the treatment of osteomyelitis, sinus augmentation, and as an adjunct to dental implant placement. Despite these advantages, the material has not enjoyed the popularity of many other regenerative materials, although there has been a recent resurgence of interest in the material. This review examines the properties and clinical applications of CS, with an emphasis on dental applications of the material. Limitations of the material are discussed as well as suggestions for future research.

Various strategies have been developed to promote bone regeneration in the craniofacial region. Most of these interventions utilize implantable materials or devices. Infections resulting from colonization of these implants may result in local tissue destruction in a manner analogous to periodontitis. This destruction is mediated via the expression of various inflammatory mediators and tissue-destructive enzymes. Given the well-documented association among microbial biofilms, inflammatory mediators, and tissue destruction, it seems reasonable to assume that inflammation may interfere with bone healing and regeneration. Paradoxically, recent evidence also suggests that the presence of certain pro-inflammatory mediators is actually required for bone healing. Bone injury (e.g., subsequent to a fracture or surgical intervention) is followed by a choreographed cascade of events, some of which are dependent upon the presence of pro-inflammatory mediators. If inflammation resolves promptly, then proper bone healing may occur. However, if inflammation persists (which might occur in the presence of an infected implant or graft material), then the continued inflammatory response may result in suboptimal bone formation. Thus, the effect of a given mediator is dependent upon the temporal context in which it is expressed. Better understanding of this temporal sequence may be used to optimize regenerative outcomes.

Salivary biomarker discovery requires identification of analytes with high discriminatory capacity to distinguish disease from health, including day-to-day variations that occur in analyte levels. In this study, seven biomarkers associated with inflammatory and tissue destructive processes of periodontal disease were investigated. In a prospective cohort study design, analyte expression levels were determined in unstimulated whole saliva samples collected on multiple occasions from 30 healthy adults (i.e., orally and systemically) and 50 chronic adult periodontitis patients. Salivary levels of IL-1β, IL-6, MMP-8, and albumin were significantly elevated (5.4 to 12.6×) and levels of IFNα were consistently lower (8.7×) in periodontitis patients compared with the daily variation observed in healthy adults. ROC analyses of IL-1β, IL-6 and MMP-8 yielded areas under the curves of 0.963-0.984 for discriminating periodontitis from health. These results demonstrate that levels of salivary bioanalytes of patients who have periodontitis are uniquely different from normal levels found in healthy subjects, and a panel consisting of IL-1β, MMP-8 and IL-6 shows particular diagnostic potential.

Salivary levels of TNF-alpha were elevated in patients who had clinical indicators of periodontitis, suggesting that this biomarker may serve in a panel of salivary biomarkers that could facilitate the screening, diagnosis, and management of periodontal disease.