Levels of procalcitonin in saliva and peri-implant crevicular fluid in patients with peri-implant diseases and health

Objective: To evaluate the levels of procalcitonin in saliva and peri-implant crevicular fluid (PICF) among healthy and peri-implant disease patients and correlate these levels with clinical and radiographic peri-implant parameters. Design: Three groups of 20 participants each [Group-1: healthy, Group-2: peri-implant mucositis, and Group-3: peri-implantitis] were selected. Peri-implant plaque index, bleeding on probing, probing depth and crestal bone loss was assessed. PICF and saliva samples were evaluated for procalcitonin levels and analyzed using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Kruskal-Wallis test was performed for comparisons among the study groups. Multiple comparisons were considered for Post hoc two-group comparisons using Bonferroni-corrections. The Spearman rank correlation coefficient analysis was used to analyze the correlation between procalcitonin levels of both fluids and clinical peri-implant parameters. Results: Group-3 demonstrated significantly higher values for peri-implant plaque index, bleeding on probing, probing depth, and crestal bone loss as compared to Group-1 and Group-2. Participants of both Group-2 and Group-3 reported significantly increased procalcitonin levels in saliva and PICF in comparison to Group-1. Significant positive correlations were found between PICF procalcitonin levels and bleeding on probing, probing depth, and crestal bone loss in Group-3 and significant positive correlation was found between PICF and bleeding on probing in Group-2. For salivary procalcitonin levels, a significant positive correlation was observed between procalcitonin and bleeding on probing in Group-3. Conclusions: The outcome of this study suggests that procalcitonin might play a role in peri-implant inflammation, and higher procalcitonin levels is suggestive of a probable surrogate biomarker for peri-implant diseases.