AIM: To study whether cytokine levels and bacterial counts in p atients with peri-implantitis reflect clinical treatment outcome following non-surgical management.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Luminex magnet bead technology and checkerboard DNA-DNA hybridization were used to assess treatment outcome after treatment at the implant with the most severe peri-implantitis in 41 participants.

RESULTS: Study group mean age was 40.3 years (SD ± 9.9). Stable treatment outcome after 6 months (no further bone loss, probing pocket depth decrease ≥0.5 mm, no bleeding/suppuration) was identified in 9 of 41 (22%) participants. Peri-implant crevicular fluid (PICF) levels were also lower for Il-1β (P < 0.01), and with trends of lower cytokine levels in PICF for TNF-α (P = 0.071), PDGFBB (P = 0.071), as well as for VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor) (P = 0.071), and bacterial counts for Actinomyces israelii, Aggregatibacter actonomycetemcomitans (Y4), Campylobacter gracilis, Echerichia coli, Fusobacterium periodonticum, Leptotrichia buccalis, Parvimonas micra, Staphylococcus haemolyticus, Streptococcus anginosus, and Tannerella forsythia. Increasing levels of IL-1 β and S. aureus (r(2)  = 0.856) were found only at implants with non-stable outcome. A reduction of PICF levels for selected cytokines and bacteria studied had a sensitivity of 0.77, and a specificity of 0.80 against the clinical outcome as gold standard. Data analysis failed to differences in treatments (PerioFlow(®) versus YAG: ER laser) for changes in the expression of cytokines and bacteria studied.

CONCLUSIONS: At 6 months, clinically stable treatment outcome of peri-implantitis is associated lower levels of putative pathogens total bacterial load with ≥30% reduction of IL1-β, L-6, and VEGF levels in PICF.