A microbiological and immunological study of endodontic-periodontic lesions

The microflora and humoral immune response in tissue from the periodontal pockets and root canals of five teeth with endodontic-periodontic lesions were examined. We found more microbes in the periodontal pockets than in the root canals. The flora in the periodontal pockets was dominated by rods and motile organisms, whereas that in the root canals was largely rods and cocci. We detected no spirochetes in the root canals. The cultivable microflora in the periodontal pockets comprised a high number of different species of bacteria, whereas those in the root canals included only a small number of species. There was no correlation between microbial isolates and antibody titer in the apical tissues or periodontal pockets. We conclude from these studies that the microflora of infected root canals is simple and limited, and that the local humoral immune response does not seem to affect the pathogenesis of disease directly.