Gingival crevicular fluid levels of prolactin hormone in periodontitis patients before and after treatment and in healthy controls.

OBJECTIVE: Prolactin (PRL) acts as a hormone and as a cytokine and is linked to the pathogenesis of a variety of chronic inflammatory diseases. This study aimed to investigate a potential role for prolactin in the pathogenesis of periodontitis by assessing its local gingival crevicular levels before and after periodontal treatment, compared to controls. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 40 participants were included and divided into 2 groups. Group 1; included 20 patients suffering from moderate to severe periodontitis and group 2; included 20 healthy controls. GCF samples were collected from both groups after initial clinical examination and 3 months after scaling and root planning for the periodontitis group only. Levels of prolactin were tested by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. RESULTS: At baseline, a statistically significant elevated PRL levels were shown in the periodontitis group compared to controls (p less than 0.001), with a non significant difference between males and females (p greater than 0.05) . Periodontal debridement caused a significant reduction in PRL levels but these levels remained significantly higher compared to controls levels. A 100% diagnostic accuracy was shown for PRL levels in the tested groups. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest a role for PRL in the pathogenesis of periodontitis, further, it could represent a reliable biomarker for disease activity and prognosis.

Topical insulin-liposomal formulation in management of recurrent aphthous ulcers: A randomized placebo-controlled trial.

AIM: To evaluate the effectiveness of topical insulin-liposomal gel in aphthous ulcer treatment. METHODS: 80 participants with minor aphthous ulcers were randomly divided to receive either topical insulin-liposomal gel or placebo gel (once daily) for 6 days. Assessment of outcomes included visual analog scale (VAS) for pain (primary outcome), and secondary outcomes included ulcer duration and impact of treatment on quality of life using the Oral Health Impact Profile 14 (OHIP-14). Testing of the outcomes was carried out at 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6 days after treatment for VAS and at 6 days for OHIP-14. RESULTS: For pain scores, the test group showed a significant decrease by time, this was evident from day 1 (P < .001); at day 3, median and interquartile range (IQR) values were 0 (0-1). For the placebo group, a non-significant change by time was reported between baseline and day 1; at day 3, the median value was 7 (IQR, 7-9). The test group showed significantly lower mean duration than the placebo group (P < .001). OHIP-14 scores after 6 days showed that the test group had a significantly lower score than placebo (P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Topical insulin-liposomal formulation showed marked effectiveness in management of aphthous ulcers.

ALK1 expression in oral lichen planus: a possible relation to microvessel density.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the expression of activin receptor-like kinase 1 (ALK1) and investigate its possible relationship with microvessel density (MVD) in different forms of oral lichen planus (OLP) compared to controls' biopsies. METHODS: Biopsies from 20 reticular/papular OLP (R/PLP), 20 atrophic/erosive OLP (A/ELP) patients, and 20 healthy subjects were immunohistochemically analyzed and statistically compared and correlated for ALK1 expression and MVD as assessed by CD34 expression. RESULTS: All OLP specimens revealed the presence of positive cytoplasmic CD34 immunostaining in endothelial cells, with statistically high significant MVD in each of R/PLP (Median; M = 4.40) and A/ELP (M = 7.69) compared to controls (M = 1.16) (P < 0.001). Statistically significant MVD was found in A/ELP compared to R/PLP (P < 0.001). All control specimens revealed negative ALK1 immunostaining of the few inflammatory cells found, while 85% of A/ELP cases and 70% of R/PLP cases showed positively immunostained sections for ALK-1, with statistically significant higher ALK1 expression In A/ELP (M = 1.95) compared to R/PLP (M = 0.86) (P = 0.005). No significant correlation between CD34 and ALK1 was detected in R/PLP (r = 0.081), while a barely moderate positive correlation was found in A/ELP (r = 0.396). CONCLUSIONS: ALK1 expression and MVD are increased in OLP, particularly in A/ELP type.