Gingival overgrowth induced by nifedipine and cyclosporin A. Clinical and morphometric study with image analysis

In this study, we developed a quantitative method with digital image analysis to evaluate the degree of gingival overgrowth (GO), and compared GO in kidney transplant patients treated with cyclosporin A (CsA) (n = 21) or CsA+nifedipine (n = 8) and a group of healthy controls (n = 30). The method was reproducible and reliable. Our findings showed significant differences in papillary and gingival surface between controls and transplant patients treated with GO inducers. Gingival overgrowth index also differed significantly between controls and each patient group (p < 0.01, Kruskal-Wallis test). The administration of the calcium channel blocker nifedipine potentiated the adverse effect of CsA: comparison of the morphometric findings revealed significant differences between patients treated with CsA alone and CsA+nifedipine in papillary area, dental area, and GO index (p < 0.01, Mann-Whitney U-test). We conclude that the method of image analysis we developed is useful in assessing the degree of GO.