[Relationship between levels of aspartate aminotransferase in gingival crevicular fluid and periodontal disease activity].

This paper describes a longitudinal study in which clinical parameters and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) in gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) were monitored bimonthly over a 6-12 months period in 970 sites from 7 treated periodontitis patients. In this study, 21 out of 970 sites exhibited new attachment loss (AL) of at least 2mm between two consecutive visits. The GCF-AST levels and clinical parameters at sites with active tissue destruction (> or = 2mm AL within two months) were significantly higher than those at control sites on the same tooth. The GCF-AST levels and clinical parameters at sites with active tissue destruction decreased significantly after re-treatment. The measurement of GCF-AST could be an useful adjunctive criterion for detection of disease activity. However, it seems to be unsatisfactory in predicting disease activity.