Anti-tumor necrosis factor-alpha therapy and periodontal parameters in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of anti-tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) therapy on the clinical and immunologic parameters of the periodontium.

Ten patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who routinely received infusions of infliximab, 200 mg (RA+), 10 patients with RA without anti-TNF-alpha therapy (RA-), and 10 healthy controls (C) were included. Clinical parameters, including the plaque index (PI), gingival index (GI), probing depth (PD), clinical attachment loss (AL), and bleeding on probing (BOP), were assessed, and total gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) TNF-alpha level was determined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Analysis of variance with Scheffe modification and the Pearson correlation test were used for statistical analysis.

The ages of the patients ranged from 22 to 76 years (mean, 50.73 +/- 9.1 years). The mean PI was similar among the groups. However, mean inflammatory parameters in the three groups varied significantly; GI was greater in the RA- group compared to RA+ and C groups (P = 0.0042). The RA+ group exhibited less BOP than RA- and C groups (21.1% +/- 3.0%, 45.9% +/- 6.2%, and 39.1% +/- 7.2%, respectively; P = 0.0146). The mean PD in the RA+ group was shallower than in RA- and C groups (3.22 +/- 0.13 mm, 3.85 +/- 0.22 mm, and 3.77 +/- 0.20 mm, respectively; P = 0.055). Clinical AL in the RA+ group was lower than in RA- and C groups (3.68 +/- 0.11 mm, 4.52 +/- 0.26 mm, and 4.35 +/- 0.24 mm, respectively; P = 0.0273). TNF-alpha levels in the GCF of the RA+ group were the lowest compared to RA- and C groups (0.663, 1.23, and 0.949 ng/site, respectively; P = 0.0401). A significant positive correlation was found between TNF-alpha levels in the GCF and clinical AL (r = 0.448; P = 0.0283).

Patients with RA receiving anti-TNF-alpha medication had lower periodontal indices and GCF TNF-alpha levels. Thus, suppression of proinflammatory cytokines might prove beneficial in suppressing periodontal diseases.