The Associations of Periodontopathic Bacteria and Oral Candida with Periodontal Inflamed Surface Area in Older Adults Receiving Supportive Periodontal Therapy

The periodontal inflamed surface area (PISA) has been proposed for assessment of the total periodontal inflammatory status in people with periodontitis. This study was performed to investigate the associations of periodontopathic bacteria and candida with PISA in older people. We enrolled 100 patients aged ≥ 60 years who visited Hiroshima University Hospital. PISA and periodontal epithelial surface area (PESA) were calculated in each patient. Oral rinse samples were collected for DNA extraction. Periodontopathic bacteria and candida were detected by polymerase chain reaction. The mean values of PISA and PESA were significantly greater in T. forsythia-positive patients than in T. forsythia-negative patients. T. forsythia/C. albicans double-positive patients exhibited significantly greater PISA values than did non-double-positive patients. Additionally, PISA values were significantly greater in T. forsythia//T. denticola/C. albicans triple-positive patients than in T. forsythia//T. denticola/C. albicans non-triple-positive patients (p = 0.02). Propensity score-matching was performed between periodontopathic bacteria-positive and -negative patients using propensity scores generated from clinical factors. Importantly, T. forsythia/T. denticola double-positive patients exhibited significantly greater PISA values than non-double-positive patients among 72 propensity score-matched patients. Our preliminary results highlight the importance of the presence of T. forsythia and T. denticola for periodontal inflammation severity in older Japanese people.