A comparative study on periodontitis and periodontitis‐associated bacteria in Somali and non‐Somali children and adolescents living in Trollhättan, Sweden

Abstract

The reported prevalence of periodontitis in children and adolescents varies considerably between populations globally. This cross-sectional study compares clinical and microbiological findings on 83 Somali immigrants and 96 non-Somali children aged 10-17 years old living in Trollhättan, Sweden. The clinical examination included registration of bleeding on probing, plaque, and calculus on incisors and first molars. The distance between cemento-enamel junction and bone level was measured on bitewing radiographs. Pooled microbiological samples (1 μL) were taken from the mesial surface of 16, 11, 31, 36, and analyzed by culture and real-time polymerase chain reaction for seven periodontal associated bacterial species. The Somali participants had poorer oral hygiene and more bleeding, plaque, and calculus. Ten of the Somali but none of the non-Somali participants showed periodontal breakdown (radiographical bone loss > 3 mm), corresponding to a prevalence of 12% (95% CI: 5.9, 21.0%). The presence of A. actinomycetemcomitans was almost exclusively associated with Somali participants. Further, the JP2 clone was found in five Somalis (including two periodontitis cases) confirming the association of this clone with African populations. The Somali group showed significantly higher frequencies and numbers of Porphyromonas gingivalis and Treponema denticola, implying a mature and adult type of subgingival microbiota.

Periodontal diseases in Thai schoolchildren. Clinical and microbiological observations

“…It clearly indicates that the colonization and growth of bacterial species, putatively regarded as periodontal pathogens, already may be present in the subgingival microbiota of Thai schoolchildren where a microbiological dysbiosis is a normality and generally established in young subjects with poor oral hygiene and gingival inflammation. In view of the poor oral hygiene, this observation confirms the findings made in a recent study among Somali child immigrants in Sweden, who showed a high frequency and number of periodontitis-associated bacterial species, implying a more mature and adult type of subgingival microbiota than that of the non-Somali, mostly Swedish children [ 29 ].…”

“…The problem is to find a cutoff level clinically that indicates a true loss of attachment. Clinical and epidemiological studies often use CAL of ≥ 3 mm to be recorded or ≥ 2 mm bone loss to be registered on radiographs (CEJ-BC) before periodontitis can be diagnosed [ 3 , 8 , 26 – 29 ]. However, the onset of the disease occurs before that and the new consensus considers this by introducing the staging and grading of periodontitis [ 5 , 6 ].…”

qPCR Detection and Quantification of Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans and Other Periodontal Pathogens in Saliva and Gingival Crevicular Fluid among Periodontitis Patients

“…Furthermore, the JP2 clone was discovered in five Somalis (including two periodontitis cases), confirming the clone’s association with African populations. P. gingivalis and Treponema denticola were found in significantly higher numbers and frequencies in the Somali group, indicating a mature and adult type of subgingival microbiota [ 59 ]. Our results as well as previous research backed up these findings, demonstrating that JP2 genotype carriers may be exclusively found in people of African descent [ 58 , 60 , 61 , 62 ].…”

Age-Related Subgingival Colonization of Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Porphyromonas gingivalis and Parvimonas micra—A Pragmatic Microbiological Retrospective Report

“…Methods for this are scarcely reported. However, a method described by Thorbert Mros and co-workers [ 39 ] is based on usage of a curette corresponding to 1 μL (1 μL inoculation loop; Sarstedt).…”