Stereological Analysis of the Dental Pulp in Patients with Advanced Periodontitis

Abstract

Background : The adverse effects of periodontitis on dental pulp have long been argued. The purpose of this study was to investigate stereological indices of dental pulp in patients with advanced periodontitis compared with healthy people. Materials and Methods : In this case-control study, 15 single-rooted permanent teeth of patients with advanced periodontal diseases and that of people with healthy periodontium, as control group, were investigated. All teeth were intact, and without filling and decay. After tissue processing, longitudinal serial sections of the tooth were prepared and stained by Masson’s trichrome. A grid containing organized points superimposed on the images of each section randomly. Then, the points hit with each subject were counted. The volume of pulp and its components in both groups were estimated, using Cavalieri’s principle. Data were analyzed using Mann-Whitney U test. The significance level was considered as p