The role of crevicular fluid iron in periodontal disease

This article presents a brief review of literature on the role of iron in infection and reports the concentration of iron in crevicular fluid (CF) in humans and beagle dogs. Crevicular fluid from human subjects was collected from gingivitis and periodontitis sites. The CF from beagle dogs was collected from gingivitis and active periodontitis (ligature-induced) sites. The results showed that the concentration of iron in human CF was often higher than in human serum. Also, a comparison between CF collected from gingivitis sites and periodontitis sites revealed a significantly higher concentration of iron in CF collected from the periodontitis sites. The studies in ligature-induced periodontitis in beagle dogs revealed at least a 3-fold increase in iron concentration in CF following ligation compared to the preligation values. Based on the available literature it is suggested that high concentration of iron in CF is not due to serum transferrin or polymorphonuclear leukocyte lactoferrin. Also, this high concentration of iron in CF might play an important role in enhancement of growth and virulence of microorganisms of the subgingival plaque and the initiation of active periodontitis.