Microbial profiles of patients seeking treatment for periodontitis Influence of origin, smoking and age? Key words: periodontitis, microbial profile, epidemiology, A. actinomycetemcomitans, P. gingivalis

Summary Purpose: We assessed the potential influence of the origin, the smoking status and the age on subgingival microbial profiles of subjects seeking periodontal care in Switzerland today. Material and Methods: Subgingival samples were obtained from 182 subjects originating from 44 countries (56 native Swiss, 64 other European, 43 African, 19 others), seeking periodontal treatment at the School of Dental Medicine at the University of Geneva. Four periodontal microorganisms were quantified by direct hybridization with specific RNA probes. Results: Tannerella forsythia and Treponema denticola were ubiquitous (95.6%, 93.9%), and Porphyromonas gingivalis was frequently detected (89%). Counts correlated with the size of the microbial sample (total load). Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans was detected in only 70 (38.4%) subjects. Counts were highly variable and unrelated to total load. Subjects less than 46.8 years old (median age) had a higher risk to be positive than older subjects. Detection frequencies and counts of all four organisms were unrelated to the origin or the smoking status. Conclusions: Based on a [...] DÉCAILLET, Fabien, et al. Microbial profiles of patients seeking treatment for periodontitis: Influence of origin, smoking and age? Schweizer Monatsschrift für Zahnmedizin, 2012, vol. 122, no. 3, p. 198-204