[Morphological study of periodontal tissues in the initial stage of periodontal disease. Part 1. Application of a morphological measurement and a system for evaluating the periodontal status].

The functional aberration of occlusion, based on the morphology of the alveolar process, causes chronic irritation of the periodontium in addition to the concomitant effect of other local environment factors. This investigation was designed to study the role of morphological characteristics in the periodontal disease process. The periodontal health of 22 subjects was recorded by clinical and roentgenological measurements of the loss of periodontal tissue. The criteria for this selection were no loss of or a crowding of adjoining teeth and no disharmony in occlusal contact. Morphological data were measured around the premolars and molars of lower jaws on the study models individuals, in bucco-lingual width of the alveolar bone in relationship to the width of the crown and the sagittal figure of the Spee curve etc. by using a three-dimensional analyzer. The subjects were categorized as Type II when the records indicated a ratio of the crown width/bone width of 1/1.2. Types I and III, depended on a greater and smaller ratio, respectively. Type W symbolized the alveolar process, of which the interproximal bone showed a considerable curvature mediodistally. Type F showed a flat pattern. The sagittal figure of the Spee curve was divided into four patterns: Pattern A or B, when the cusp of the canine and first premolar leveled over or on the occlusal plane; Pattern C, when the cusp of the canine leveled over and the first premolar under the occlusal plane, and Pattern D, when all cusps, canine, premolar and molar, were under the occlusal plane. The distance from the occlusal plane to the deepest point of the Spee curve was divided into four groups: Pattern a, when the distance was 0-1.0 mm, Pattern b, 1.1-2.0 mm, Pattern c, 2.1-3.0 mm and Pattern d, 3.1-4.0 mm. These results suggest that the morphological evaluation is a useful diagnostic indicators on a rational basis. The morphological characteristics might be related to the presence of periodontal disease and allowed to speculate the pathological changes in established stage, and also to the response to periodontal treatment in the initial stage of periodontal disease.