Characterization of specimens obtained by different sampling methods for evaluation of periodontal bacteria

Abstract

Quantitative analysis of periodontal bacteria is considered useful for clinical diagnosis, evaluation and assessment of the risk of periodontal disease. The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of sampling of saliva, supragingival and subgingival plaque for evaluation of periodontal bacteria. From each of 12 subjects, i) subgingival plaque was collected from the deepest pocket using a sterile paper point, ii) stimulated whole saliva was collected after chewing gum, and iii) supragingival plaque was collected using a tooth brush. These samples were sent to the medical examination laboratory for quantitative analysis of the counts of three periodontal bacterial species: Porphyromonas gingivalis, Treponema denticola, and Tannerella forsythia. The proportions of these bacteria in subgingival plaque were higher than those in saliva or supragingival plaque, but lower in subgingival plaque than in saliva or supragingival plaque. In several cases, periodontal bacteria were below the levels of detection in subgingival plaque. We concluded that samples taken from subgingival plaque may be more useful for evaluating the proportion of periodontal bacteria in deep pockets than is the case for other samples. Therefore, for evaluation of periodontal bacteria, clinicians should consider the characteristics of the specimens obtained using different sampling methods.

Oral Microbiome Signatures in Diabetes Mellitus and Periodontal Disease

“…The examination and classification were conducted according to guidelines from the World Health Organization (WHO; 2016) and the Community Periodontal Index, as shown in Appendix Table 1. Plaque samples were collected with a wood toothpick because this method has been shown to yield a higher or similar proportion of bacteria when compared with saliva or supragingival plaque sampling (Hsu et al 2010;Okada et al 2017). Briefly, plaque sampling was achieved by inserting the device in the subgingival crevice between the maxillary second premolar and the first upper molar, and 4 toothpick samples were collected from both sides of the mouth and stored separately.…”

Inquiry-Driven Bioinformatics Laboratory Research Module: Metagenomic Study of Student Oral Microbes

“…The Treponema denticola amplicon did not show up commonly in the student population in the genetics classes sampled. It is indicated in the causation of periodontitis ( 39 , 40 ), dental infection ( 41 ), and oral cancer ( 42 ).…”

Oral Microbiome in Four Female Centenarians

“…As all subjects wore complete dentures, plaque samples were collected from the denture surface based on a method described in previous reports [40,41]. Briefly, the denture was brushed around the buccal surface with a toothbrush for 2 min, followed by immersion of the toothbrush with the attached plaque in sterilized, phosphate-buffered saline (PBS).…”