An electron microscopic study of human neutrophils obtained by crevicular washing.

The Application of electron microscopic methods to the study of neutrophils obtained from single sites by crevicular washing is described. A subsequent preliminary study of neutrophils and neutrophil-bacterial interactions at advanced lesions in patients with juvenile periodontitis and juvenile diabetes indicated that the neutrophils are phagocytically active at these sites. It is suggested that in vitro assays of crevicular neutrophil function may exaggerate the extent of impairment of phagocytosis because of cellular activity which has taken place prior to the time of sampling.