Probing pocket depth at mobile/ Anne-Marie Neiderud.

Ingvar Ericsson and Jan Lindhe

Department 01 PeriodontOlogy. University of
Goteborg. Gothenburg. Sweden

nonmobile teeth
Neiderud A-M. Ericsson I and Lindhe J: Probing pocket depth 01 mobile/nonmobile
lee/h. J eli" Periodontal 1992; 19: 754-759. IE' Munksgaard 1992.

Abstract. The aim of the present investigation was to study the influence of an
increased tooth mobility on the resistance offered by the periodontal tissues to
probing. 6 beagle dogs were used. At the start of the experiment. the animals
had clean teeth and normal gingival and periodontal conditions. In each dog. a
device was installed in the lower left jaw quadrant to expose the third premolar
(P J) to jiggling forces which would enhance the mobility of this "test" tooth.
The contralateral tooth served as the non-jiggled control. During the 3 months
of experimentation. the teeth of the dogs were cleaned on a regular basis. 4:
Clinical examinations including tooth mobility measurements were performed on
days 0 and 90. After the examination on Day 90. a probe was inserted in the buccal
"pocket" of the mesial root of JP and PJ . The probe was retained with composite.
Biopsies including the test or control tooth with adjacent buccal periodontal tissues
were harvested. fixed and decalcified. Each biopsy was divided in one mesial and
one distal portion (root). The distal portion was embedded in Epon, sectioned
and stained in PAS and toluidine blue. while the mesial portion. following probe
removal was embedded in paraffin. sectioned and stained in hematoxylin-eosin.
The sections were exposed to histornetric and morphometric measurements. The
findings demonstrated that tissue alterations which occur at mobile teeth may
reduce the resistance olTered by the periodontal tissues to clinical probing. Such
Key words: mobile teeth; pocket depth;
alterations include (i) reduced height of the alveolar bone. (ii) reduced amount probing.
of collagen. and increased vascularity in the enlarged supracrestal connective
tissue. Accepted lor pUblication 15 October 1991

Probi"g pocket depth and probing
attachment level are measurements com-
monly used to describe the effect of in-
flammation and the resulting tissue loss
in periodontal disease. Based on find-
ings by, e.g.. Waerhaug (1952). it was
believed that such assessments disclosed
the position of the apical cells of the
denio-gingival epithelium. in relation to
the gingival margin of the cemento-en-
amel junction. and consequently such
terms "pocket depth" and "attachment
level/loss" were used.
Armitage et al. (1977) performed a
study in the beagle dog in order to deter-
mine certain dimensions of the pocket
depth measurement. Dogs with healthy
gingiva. gingivitis and destructive perio-
dontitis were used. Probes were inserted
at various buccal sites. Block biopsies
of the periodontal tissues. with the
probes in situ. were harvested. and sec-
tions were prepared and examined in
the microscope. The authors observed
that at healthy gingival sites. the probe
tip consistently failed to reach the cern-
ento-enamel junction. while at perio-
dontitis sites the tip consistently pen-
etrated the dento-gingival epithelium.
The findings reported by Armitage et
al. (1977) were confirmed by Van der
Velden & Jansen (1980) in a similar
study. Experimental periodontal tissue
breakdown was induced in 8 beagle
dogs. Four dogs were then during a 3-
week period subjected to meticulous
tooth cleaning. This resulted in resol-
ution of the gingival inflammation. The
remaining 4 dogs were left untreated.
Probes were inserted at various gingival
sites and block biopsies were harvested.
The authors observed that the probe
tip (0 = 0.63 rnm), under conditions of
minimal gingival inflammation. failed
to reach the cemento-enamel junction
and that at inflamed sites, the probe
penetrated more apically than at
healthy sites. Fowler et al. (1982) exam-
ined 12 inflamed sites (pockets> 6 mm
in depth) in the human dentition and 15
non-inflamed sites. A periodontal probe
(0 =0.40 mm) was inserted into the
site. using 0.50 N pressure. and was
locked in its position. Histological
examination of block biopsies revealed
that at the inflamed sites. the probe tip
penetrated beyond the junctional epi-
thelium and further a distance of 0.4
mm into the subjacent connective tissue.
At the non-inflamed sites. however, the
probe ended on the average 0.7 mm cor-
onal to the apical cells of the junctional
epithelium. The observations by Fowler
et al. (1982) are also in agreement with
data from a beagle dog study by Jansen
et al. (1981). who studied the extent and
characteristics of probe penetration in
3 different experimental sites; (i) mild
gingivitis. (ii) severe periodontal inflam-
mation. and (iii) moderate periodontal
inflammation. Jansen et Ill. t 1981) con-
cluded that in mild gingivitis, the probe
tip ended about 0.8 mm coronal to the
junctional epithelium. whereas at se-
verely inflamed sites the probe tip
passed the apical termination of the
dento-gingival epithelium I :::: 0.50 mrn).
Based on the findings reported. there

are reasons to suggest that inflamma-
tory alterations of the gingival connec-
tive tissue reduce the resistance offered
by this tissue to probing.
The effect of trauma from occlusion
on the periodontal tissues has been the
focus of much attention (Glickman
1965. 1967, Svanberg I974a. Ericsson
1971<. Polson 1980, Ericsson & Lindhe
1984). It is well-known that forces
elicited by occlusal trauma (Svanberg &
Lindhe 1973, Svanberg I974b, Polson
et al. 1976) or applied by orthodontic
means may induce loss of alveolar bone
without a concomitant apical shift of
the junctional epithelium (e.g.• Reitan
1951), increased vascularity within the
periodontal ligament (Reitan 1951.
Rygh 1974) and widened periodontal
ligament space (Reitan 1951. Rygh
19741. Such alterations result in in-
creased or increasing tooth mobility
(Svanberg 1974b). The influence of the
tissue alterations referred to and of an
.increased tooth mobility on the resist-
ance offered by the periodontal tissues
to probing has not been thoroughly
evaluated.
The objective of the present experi-
ment was to induce increased tooth mo-
bility and to study the resistance offered
by the periodontal tissue to probing.
Material and methods
The study was performed in 6 beagle
dogs which at the start of the experi-
ment were 9 months old. Throughout
the period of observation the animals
were fed a soft pellet diet (Hamp et al.
1972). During a l-month period prior
to the initiation of the experiment the
teeth of the dogs were. once a week.
scaled and polished with the use of rub-
ber cups and pumice. In addition. 3
times a week. the teeth were exposed to
careful toothbrushing.
A clinical examination performed at
the end of this pre-experimental period
(Day 0) revealed that the mandibular
premolars and molars were free from
accumulations of plaque and that the
adjacent gingivae exhibited only mini-
mal signs of inflammation. The mobility
of the mandibular third premolars. ~P
and Pl' was determined using the Peri-
otest ~ (Siemens AG, Bensheim, Ger-
many) technique (D'Hoedt et al. 1985,
Schulte 1988). The Periotest Value (PV)
constitutes. according to Schulte (1986),
a reproducible, quantitative unit for the
state of the health of the periodontium,
and it correlates with the mobility of the
Probing pocket depth at mobile/nonmobile teeth
tooth. The Periotest scale range is from
- 8 to + 50 and. according 10 Schulte
(1987), the following ranges should be
considered:
- 8 to + 9 = clinically firm teeth
10 to 19= palpable mobility
20 to 29 = visible mobility
30 to 50 = mobility in response to lip
and tongue pressure
After the clinical exam inalion on Day
0, troughs were prepared in the buccal
and lingual surfaces of the crowns of P J
(test tooth). P2 and P4 (anchor teeth).
The troughs were prepared in horizon-
tal direction and placed approximately
2 mm from the gingival margin. A metal
pin (0 =0.8 mm, TMS, Whaldent Inc.)
was inserted and cemented in each of
the troughs (Fig. 1). In order to prevent
displacement of the anchor teeth. P~ and
P4 were bonded to M. and PI' respec-
tively. Using the pins inserted in the
lingual surface of the anchor teeth as
retainers, an orthodontic elastic (3/16,
Unitec) was activated and positioned to
traverse the buccal surface of the test
tooth {PJ}. Care was exercised to pre-
vent the elastic from interfering with
the gingival margin. After 3 days. the
orthodontic elastic was removed, and a
new rubber band placed over the lingual
surface of the test tooth, using the buc-
cal pins of the anchor teeth as retainers.
The position of the elastics (buccal and
lingual) was changed twice a week dur-
ing a 3-month period. In addition, in
order to facilitate an increasing mobility
of the test teeth, the bucco-lingual di-
mension of PI was gradually increased.
This was accomplished by repealed ap-
plications of composite material on the
buccal and lingual surfaces of PJ'
During the 3-month period of moni-
toring. which followed the installation
A--
~::::::::-
~
I p,
.... \tp ,MP
Fig. I. Schematic drawingillustrating the jig-
gling device. P: = second premolar. T = test
tooth = P, = third premolar, P, = fourth pre-
molar, MP= metal pins inserted in troughs
to anchor the E= elastic rubber bands. The
rubber bands were activated to gradually in-
creasethe forcethat wasactingon the buccal
(AI and lingual (BI surface of the test tooth.
755
Fig. :!. Schematic drawing illustrating the lin-
ear distances hFG and wFG (= the height
and width of the free gingival unit) which
were measured at the histological sections.
The following reference points were used:
GM (gingival margin), CEJ (cementa-enamel
junction), and BC (marginal border of the
alveolar bone crest).
of the mobility enhancing device, the
dogs were, 3 times a week, exposed to
meticulous toothbrushing.
Tooth mobility measurements were
performed in the test and control tooth
regions on Day 0 and Day 90.
On Day 90, (i) a clinical examination
including assessment of plaque and gin-
givitis was performed. and (ii) a groove.
parallel with the long axis of the mesial
root. was prepared in the mesio-buccal
surface of the crown of JP and Pl' The
groove was not extended apical to the
gingival margin. Guided by the groove.
a wooden probe (0 =0.6 mm) was in-
serted into the buccal "pocket" of the
mesial root of JP and PJ according 10 a
technique described by Van der Velden
(1981); probing force=0.5 N: probing
device = Electronic Periodontal Probe.
model 200 (Vine Valley Research,
Middlesex. NY. USA). Following inser-
tion the probe was splinted to the buccal
tooth surface with light curing com-
posite material.
Biopsies including JP or P J with ad-
jacent buccal periodontal tissues were
obtained according 10 a technique de-
scribed by Schroeder et al. (\973). The
tissue samples were fixed in formalde-
hyde and decalcified in EDTA. Follow-
ing decalcification. each biopsy was div-
ided into one mesial and one distal por-
lion (root).
The distal portion (root) of each bi-
opsy was embedded in EPON according
to a procedure described by Schroeder
(\ 969). Bucco-lingual sections. parallel
with the long axis of the root. were cut
with the microtome set at 3 JIm. The
sections were stained in PAS and tol-
756 Neiderud et ClI.

Fig. 3. Schematic drawing illustrating the
compartments exposed to morphometric
measurements. At Level 4. a determination
was made of the connective tissue com-
ponents that were occupied by fibroblasts.
collagen. vascular structures. and residual
tissue. The measurements were confined to
compartments identied as "A" (located in the
free gingival unit). and" B" (located between
the apical termination of the junctional epi-
thelium (CEl) and the marginal border of the
alveolar bone crest (BC)).
uidine blue (Schroeder 1973). From
each biopsy 3 sections. representing the
central portion of thc distal root. were
used for histometric and morphometric
analyses.
Histometrlc measurements
Thc following linear distances were de-
termined (Fig. 2).
(I) The height of the free gingival
unit (hFO).
(2) Thc width of the free gingival unit
(wFO).
sess the composition of the free gingival
unit. Thus, the volume fractions occu-
pied by oral epithelium (OE). junctional
epithelium (JE). and connective tissue
(IT) were assessed.
At Level 4 ( x 1000; and a lattice con-
taining 100 light points: Schroeder &
Miinzel-Pedrazzoli 1973) the volume
fractions were measured that were occu-
pied by fibroblasts (Fi), collagen (Co).
vascular structures (V). and residual
tissue (R). The level 4 measurements
were restricted to the areas. which with
squares are outlined in Fig. 3. Squares
A represent the "free gingival unit" and
squares B represent the "supracrestal
connective tissue".
Following removal of the probe. the
mesial portion (root) of the biopsy was
embedded in paraffin. Bucco-lingual
sections. parallel with the long axis of
the root. were cut with the microtome
set at 6 Jim. The sections were stained
in hematoxylin-eosin. From each biopsy
5 sections. representing the site of the
probe and the adjacent tissues. were se-
lected for histometric measurements
(Fig. 4). The following linear distances
were determined.
(I) The gingival margin (OM) to the
apical portion of the probe (P); OM-P.
(2) The cemento-cnamel junction
(CEJ) to the marginal border of the al-
veolar bone crest (BC): CEJ-Be.
(3) P-Be.
(4) The apical border of the cell infil-
trate in the gingival connective tissue
(aICT), measured from the gingival
margin (OM); OM·aICT.
Statistical analysis of the data from
the test and the control sites was per-
formed using the Student paired r-test.
Results
The clinical examination performed at
the end of the experimental period (Day
90) revealed that an buccal surfaces on
the teeth monitored were free from clini-
cally detectable plaque. In addition. the
associated gingival tissues showed no or
only minimal signs of inflammation.
The results from the Periotest mea.r-
urements on Day 0 demonstrated that
the mean PV-scores (PV = Pcriotest
Value) of the test and control teeth were
similar (Test: 3.1 ±O.6 (S.D.I; Control:
2.8 ±0.5 (S.D.). On Day 90. on the other
hand, the mean Pv-score of the test
teeth was significantly higher than that
of the control teeth (30.0± 10.3 (S.D.)
and 5.6±2.4 (S.D.). respectively;
p<O.OOI>..
The histometric measurements re-
vealed that the average height (bFG)
and widht (wFO) of the free gingival
unit were about 1.7 mm and 1.5 mm,
respectively, and did not differ between
the test and control sites (Fig. 5). The
average distance CEJ-BC was found to
be significantly longer (pSO.OS) at the
test tecth than at the controls (1.7 mm
versus 1.1 mm) (Fig. 5). The histological

Morphometric measurements MM
At Level I (x 200; lattice P42; Weibel 3
1969) determinations were made to as- • TEST
1m CONTROL

o
Fig. 4. Schematic drawing illustrating the ref- hFG wFG CEJ-BC GM-P GM-aICT p-Be
erence points used for the histometric meas- Fig. 5. Histogram demonstrating the results of the histometric measurements regarding (i) the
urements: the gingival margin (GM). the api- height (hFG) and (ii) width (wFG) of the free gingival unit; and the linear distances between:
cal tip of the probe (PI.cemento-enurnel junc- (iii) cemento-enamel junction (CEJ) and the marginal border of the alveolar bone crest (BC).
tion (CEl). the marginal border of the (CEl-BC); (iv) the gingival margin (GM) and the apical portion of the probe (P). (GM·P);
alveolar bone crest (BC). and the apical bor- (v) GM and the apical border of the cell inliltrate (aICT). (GM-aICT); and (vi) P-Be. •
der of the cell infiltrate (aICT). Difference between test and control sites; p < 0.05.
 Probing pocket ("'PI" at mobilernonmobile teet" 757

% FREE GINGIVAL UNIT Discussion

80
The present investigation demonstrated
that tissue alterations, which occur at
mobile teeth with clinically healthy gin-
60 givae and normal height of the connec-
• TeST tive tissue attachment. may reduce the
II CONTROL resistance offered by the periodontal
40 tissues to clinical probing. Thus. in the
experiment reported. it was observed
that jiggling forces resulted in mobile
teeth. marked loss of marginal bone and
20 in an enlarged supracrestal connective
tissue compartment. In this large. supra-
crestal compartment there was less col-
o lagen but more vascular structures than
FI Co v R in the smaller supracrestal tissue in the
non-jiggled control sites.
Fig. I'i. Histogram demonstrating the results of the morphometric measurements. performed
at Level 4. in the free gingival unit. The percentage volumes of the connective tissue com-
The morphometric analysis of the
ponents in the area presented. Fi = fibroblasts: Co = collagen: V =vascular structures. R = free gingival units sampled from the test
residual tissue. and the control teeth revealed that both
tissues were comprised of about 40Ulc,
epithelium and about 60% connective
tissue. These ligures arc similar to data
probing depth (GM-P) at the test sites of the tissue was comprised of epithel- reported from analyses of gingival tissue
was almost twice as great as the ob- ium and 60"1.. of conne..ctive tissue. in dogs (Schroeder et al. 1973.Lindhe &
served at the control sites (1.2 mm ver- Data from measurements performed Rylander 1975. Berglundh et al. 1990)
sus 0.7 rnm: p SO.003) (Fig. 5). The api- at Level 4 revealed that the connective and demonstrate that the "jiggling"
cal extension of the ICT (GM-aICT) tissue of the free gingiva! unit ("A": Fig. forces applied to the test teeth failed to
was similar (0.2 mm) in the test and 3) of both the test and control sites con- change the overall composition of the
control biopsies. The height of the sup- sisted of about 15% fibroblasts (Fi), free gingiva.
racrestal connective tissue portion 65'X. collagen (Co). I2'Yo vascular struc- Glickman (1965) claimed that the
located between the probe tip and the tures (V) and 10% residual tissue (R) periodontal tissues can be divided into
bone crest (p·Be) was significantly (Fig. 6). The "supracrestal" connective 2 zones; the zone of irritation and the
greater at the test than at the control tissue (" B"; Fig. 3) at the test teeth in zone of co-destruction. The zone of irri-
sites (pSO.05) (Fig. 5). comparison to the controls (Fig. 7). tation, i.e., the free gingiva, may house
The morphometric measurements at comprised significantly less collagen an inflammatory cell infiltrate, as re-
Level I demonstrated that the free gin- (66.2% versus 74.6%: p < 0.05) and sig- sponse to a subgingival plaque. but fails
gival unit from the test and controltecht nificantly more vascular structures to respond to forces elicited by "trauma
had similar composition. i.e.. about40'Yu (11.4% versus 5.0%; p<0.05). from occlusion". To some extent. the
validity of this hypothesis was sup-
ported by observations made in the
SUPRACRESTAL CONNECTIVE TISSUE present study. Thus. (i) the measure-
% ments describing the height. width and
80 * composition of the free gingiva did not
differ between test and control sites. and
(ii) the free gingiva harbored an infil-
trate the location and extension of
60 which were close to identical at test and
• TEST control teeth.
The morphometric analysis of the
II CONTROL
composition of the supracrestal connec-
40
tive tissue disclosed marked differences
c between the test and the control sites.
Thus. the longer supraalveolar tissue at
20 the test teeth had significantly /t'SS col-
lagen but significantly more vascular
structures than the corresponding con-
o trol tooth tissue (Fig. 7). This obser-
FI Co v R vation is in accord with findings by
Fi~. i. Histogram demonstrating the results of the morphometric measurements. performed Glickman (1965), Svanberg (l974b),
at Level 4, in the supracrestal connective tissue (squares" BOO; Fig. 3). For details see legends Svanberg & Lindhe (1974). and Polson
Fit!. 6. • Difference between test and control sites; p < O.OS. et al. (\976). Svanberg (l974b) and

I
IiL..

758 Neiderud et al.
Svanberg & Lindhe (1974) exposed pre-
molars in dogs to jiggling forces. The
authors reported that during the phase
of developing tooth mobility (the trau-
matic phase), the vascularity of the cor-
onal portion of the periodontal liga-
ment was increased. In the present study
the coronal portion of the alveolar bone
was resorbed during the 90 days of jig-
gling. Consequently, part of the supra-
crestal tissue that was involved in the
histological examination included an
area which was previously occupied by
the "coronal portion" of the perio-
dontal ligament and the alveolar bone.
h is suggested, that (i) the increased
amount of soft tissue, (ii) the reduced
relative volume of collagen, and (iii) the
increased amount of vessels observed
in this supracrestal compartment. may
represent alterations which are associ-
ated with the increased probing depth
observed at the mobile test teeth.
The finding that the mobility of the
tooth may inlluence the value of the
probing depth measurement at this
tooth is of importance in the evaluation
of data derived from clinical studies.
Recently Burgett et al. (1992), in 50 sub-
jects with periodontal disease studied
the effect of occlusal therapy in combi-
nation with antimicrobial treatment on
probing attachment level, probing
pocket depth and tooth mobility. Fol-
lowing an initial phase of therapy which
included subgingival scaling and root
planing, 22 subjects received occlusal
adjustment to obtain improved tooth
stability. In the remaining 28 subjects
treatment did not include occlusal ad-
justment. Two months after occlusal
therapy all patients were subjected to
antimicrobial therapy. Thus, in 2 ran-
domly selected quadrants treatment in-
cluded modified Widman surgery and
in the 2 remaining quadrants additional
subgingival scaling and root planing.
The authors reported that there was sig-
nificanlly greater gain of clinical perio-
dontal attachment in patients who re-
ceived occlusal adjustment and im-
proved tooth stability than in subjects
where marked tooth mobility remained
following debridement. Based on the
findings made in the present experi-
ment, however, there are reasons to sug-
gest that probing attachment levels may
be inlluenced not only by the elimin-
ation of the inllammatory cell infiltrate
within the gingiva, but also by the
height and the composition of the supra-
crestul connective tissue at mobile and
non-mobile teeth. Consequently. it may
be questioned whether comparisons of
probing attachment levels at teeth with
varying degree of mobility, provide
meaningful data regarding the height of
the attachment apparatus and its re-
sponse to antimicrobial therapy.
Acknowledgements
This investigation was supported by
grants from Colgate Palmolive Co., Pis-
cataway, NJ, USA, and Praktikertjanst
AB, Stockholm, Sweden.
Zusammen'assung
Die Sondierungstiefe (//I beweglichen/unbe-
weglichen Zahnen
Das Ziel der vorliegenden Untersuchung war
das Studium des Einflusses einer erhiihten
Zahnbeweglichkeit auf den Widersland. den
parodontale Gewebe der Sondierung entge-
gensetzen, Es wurden sechs Beaglehunde be-
nutzt. Dei Beginn des Experiments hatten die
Hunde saubere Zahne sowie normalen Gingi-
va- und Parodontalzustand, Um den dritten
Pramolaren (P3) Jigglingkrfiften, die die
Zahnbeweglichkeil der "Test"-Zahne erho-
hen, auszusetzen, wurde bei jedem Hund ein
Gerat im unteren linken Kiefer installiert.
Der kontralatcrale Zahn dientc als Nicht-
Jiggling-Kontrolle. Wahrend der 3-monati-
gen experimentellen Periode wurden die Zah-
ne der Hunde regelmaBig gesaubert. Klini-
.sche Untersuchungen. die die Messung der
Zahnbeweglichkeit einschlossen, wurden an
Tag 0 und Tag 90 durchgefiihrt. Nach der
Untersuchung an Tag 90 wurde cine Sonde
in die bukkale "Tasche" der mesialen Wurzel
von 3P und P3 eingefuhrt, Die Sonde wurde
mit Komposit befestigt. Es wurden Biopsien
der Test- und Kontrollzahne einschlielllich
des angrenzenden bukkalen parodontalen
Gewebes gewonnen, fixiert und entkalkt.
Jede Biopsie wurde in einen mesialen und
einen distalen Anteil getrennt, Der distale
Anteil wurde in Epon eingebettet, geschnitten
und mit PAS sowie Toluidinblau gefarbt,
wiihrend der mesiale Anteil nach dem Entfer-
nen der Sonde in Paramn eingebc:ttet. ge-
schnittcn und mit Hiimatoxylineosin geflirbt
wurde. Die Schniue wurden histometrisch
und morphometrisch vermessen. Die Ergeb-
nisse zeigten. daB Gewebc:veriinderungen. wie
sie bc:i beweglichen Ziihnen auftreten. den
Widerstand, den parodontale Gewebe der
klinischen Sondierung entgegensetzen, re-
duzieren kunnen. Diese Veriinderungen
schliellen ein: (I) Reduzierte Alveolarkno-
chenhohe, (2) Reduzicrte Kollagenmenge
sowie erhuhte Vaskularisation des vermehr-
len supraillveoliiren Bindegewebes.
Resume
Profondeur ell'S podlC's au sondage .wr des
dell/s mobile's/llo/l mubi/e.r
Le bUl du present travail etait d'ctudier l'in-
"
I
fluence d'une augmentalion de la rnobilite
d'une dent sur la resistance que fournissent
les tissus parodontaux au sondage. L'etude
a porte sur 6 chiens beagle. Au debut de
l'experience, les animaux avaint des dents
propres avec des gencives nonnales et un pa-
rodonte normal. Chez chacun des chiens, un
appareil exposant la 3- premolaire (P3) Ii
des forces de va-et-vieat a cti: P(lse dans Ie
quadrant inrerieur gauche pour augmenter la
mobilite de cette dent experimemale (test).
La dent controlaterale servait de temoin
(control) sans va-et-vient. Pendant les 3 mois
de l'experience, les dents des chiens ont ete
neuoyees a intervalles reguliers. Des examens
cliniques avec mesure de la mobilite dcntaire
ont ete pratiques aux jours 0 et 90. Apr'~
l'examen du jour 90. une sonde a eie introdui-
te dans la "poche" vestibulaire de la racine
mesiale de 3Pet de P3. La sonde a ete mainte-
nue en place avec un composite. Des biopsies
eontenant les dents experimentales et temoins
avec les tissus parodomaux vestibulaires ad-
jacents ont elc prelevees, fixees et derninerali-
sees. Chacune des biopsies a eti: partagee en
une portion mi:siale et une portion distale
(racine). La portion distale a ete incluse dans
Epon, coupee et coloree par PAS et b!eu de
toluidine. tandis que la portion mesiale, apres
ablation de la sonde. ctail incluse dans la
paraffine. 'coupee et coloree par hema-
toxyline-eosine. Les coupes ont subi des me-
sures histometriques et morphometriques.
Les resultats onl montre que les a Iterations
des tissus prenant place au niveau des dents
mobiles peuvent reduire la resistance fournie
par les tissus parodontaux au sondage clini-
que. Ces alterations comprennent (i) une re-
duction de la hauteur de l'os alveolaire, Iii)
une reduction des quantites de collagene, et
une augmentation de la vascularisation dans
le tissu conjonctif supra-crestal, dont Ievolu-
me est augmente,
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Address:
. Ingvar Ericsson
Department 0/ Periodontology
Odont, Klin.
Box 33070
40033 Gothenburg'
Sweden