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.