The effects of periodontal therapy on intracrevicular prostaglandin E2 concentrations and clinical parameters in pregnancy

Background: The increase in circulating levels of progesterone during pregnancy stimulates production of prostaglandins, especially prostaglandin E-2, possibly resulting in pregnancy gingivitis. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the influence of prostaglandin E-2 concentrations on gingival tissues in pregnancy and to assess its relationship to clinical parameters. Methods: This study evaluates the effects of periodontal treatment on clinical indices including plaque index, gingival index, probing depth, and gingival crevicular fluid prostaglandin E-2 levels of 22 pregnant women in their first, second, and third trimesters. Initial periodontal therapy consisting of scaling, root planing, and oral hygiene instruction was performed at the beginning of the first trimester and repeated each trimester. Prostaglandin E-2 concentrations in gingival crevicular fluid were determined using a commercially available enzyme immunoassay kit. The statistical tests used were paired sample test and correlation analysis. Results: The results of the study show that periodontal therapy has resulted in an improvement in clinical parameters (P <0.05). There is also a statistically significant decrease in levels of prostaglandin E-2 at the second and third trimesters following periodontal therapy (P <0.001). The correlation between prostaglandin E-2 concentrations and clinical parameters is found to be non-significant (P >0.05). Conclusions: Our data indicate that levels of prostaglandin E-2 in gingival crevicular fluid may be used as a marker of gingival inflammation in order to determine the effects of periodontal therapy in pregnancy. Periodontal therapy that is performed throughout the entire pregnancy period may help prevent the threat of pregnancy gingivitis.