Histological differences between teeth with adult periodontitis and prepubertal periodontitis.

Thirty-nine permanent teeth from three siblings aged 11 to 14 years were extracted because of generalized prepubertal periodontitis (PP) and studied histologically with light microscopy. Twenty healthy teeth (HT) removed for orthodontic procedures from 10 children of similar ages and 22 teeth affected by adult periodontitis (AP) extracted from patients over 50 years old were used as controls. The cementum of the PP teeth was much thicker than that of the healthy teeth. A high percentage of resorption, unrelated to inflammation, was found in all the teeth studied. In 24 PP teeth the cementum was infiltrated by microorganisms and bacterial substances. All PP teeth showed a cuticle ranging from 10 to 80 microns in thickness on the diseased cementum. No similar structure was noted on the diseased cementum of the AP teeth. The PP teeth did not show any structural changes which could account for the severity of the periodontal lesions.