OBJECTIVETo investigate the clinical results of initial periodontal therapy on chronic periodontitis patients with stable coronary heart disease.

METHODSThirty-two chronic periodontitis patients with stable coronary heart disease were included in this prospective study. All subjects received oral hygiene instruction, scaling and root planing and clinically monitored for 3 months. The clinical parameters, including plaque index (PLI), probing depth (PD), attachment loss (AL) and bleeding index (BI), were recorded at baseline and 3 months after treatment. Serum levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), cholesterol (CHO), triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and glucose (GLU) were also measured.

RESULTSAt 3 months after initial periodontal therapy, the mean PD of patients reduced from (3.95 +/- 0.15) mm to (2.93 +/- 0.21) mm (P < 0.01), the mean AL from (3.08 +/- 0.43) mm to (2.43 +/- 0.37) mm (P < 0.01), the percentage of sites with PD > or =5 mm from (22.37 +/- 6.88)% to (3.00 +/- 1.80)% (P < 0.01). hs-CRP significantly decreased at 3 months after treatment compared with baseline [(2.71 +/- 2.69) mg/L vs. (1.99 +/- 2.14) mg/L, P < 0.05]. CHO,TG, HDL, LDL and GLU decreased slightly (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSInitial periodontal therapy is effective for chronic periodontitis patients with stable coronary heart disease. After initial periodontal therapy, periodontal parameters improved significantly and serum levels of hs-CRP decreased.