RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Candida can be implicated in the pathology of chronic periodontitis. AIMS: To analyze the oral Candida carriage in patients suffering from chronic periodontitis (CP) and its correlation with the severity of this condition. METHODS: Microbiological samples were taken from 155 patients using the oral rinse (OR) technique and by using paper points in the periodontal pockets (GPP). These patients were divided into 3 groups: 89 patients without CP (control), 47 with moderate CP, and 19 with severe CP. Samples were cultured in a Candida chromogenic agar for Candida. Species were identified by microbiological and molecular methods. RESULTS: Candida was isolated in the OR of 45 (50.6%), 21 (44.7%), and 11 (57.9%) patients, respectively, and in the GPP of 32 (36%), 14 (29.2%), and 10 (42.6%) patients from the control, moderate CP and severe CP groups, respectively. Candida was isolated more frequently and in a greater burden in OR than in GPP (p<0.01). Candida albicans was the most prevalent species. GPP of patients with CP had poor fungal biodiversity (p<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Colonization by Candida was present in the samples of patients without CP, and with both moderate and severe CP. Nonetheless, patients with severe CP had a higher rate of Candida colonization, especially by C. albicans.