RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the correlation of chronic periodontitis in tropical area and IFN-γ, IL-10 and IL-17 levels. METHODS: One hundred and forty-eight patients and one hundred and thirty-two healthy control subjects were included in the study. Clinical parameters (PI, GI and PD) and GCF levels of IFN-γ, IL-10 and IL-17 were measured at baseline, week 8, week 16 and week 24 after mechanical removal of dental plaque. IFN-γ and IL-10 were determined with ELISA methods and IL-17 was determined with the cytometric bead array. RESULTS: Removal of dental plaque resulted in improvement in all clinical parameters. Meanwhile, GCF IL-17 declined to control levels, while GCF IFN-γ and IL-10 levels remained unchanged. CONCLUSIONS: The decline of GCF IL-17 levels in patients with resolution of periodontitis suggests that IL-17 is involved in the periodontal inflammatory process.