Peripheral PMN cell activity in relation to treatment of juvenile periodontitis

Ten patients with untreated juvenile periodontitis (JP) showing an increased generation rate of free oxygen radicals from their peripheral polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) as measured by luminol enhanced chemiluminescence (CL) were rechecked after treatment. The PMN cells from eight patients still reacted with higher CL after stimulation with Staph. aureus opsonized with autologous serum when related to pair-matched controls. The increased CL was not caused by adsorption of serum factors from untreated JP patients when assayed with healthy PMN cells. The increased CL found in peripheral PMN cells from patients with JP thus depends very little on the disease activity.