Dental status and oxidative homeostasis state in patients exposed to occupational vibration: superoxide dismutase and catalase content in oral fluid

Abstract

Aim: The aim of the research involved determination of catalase and superoxide dismutase content in oral fluid of patients exposed to occupational vibration depending upon their dental status. Materials and methods: The assessment of dental status (DS) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) content in oral fluid (OF) was performed in three groups of patients: control group (n0=129) included the persons exposed to occupational vibration and whose results of combined medical examination excluded the presence of vibration disease (VD); the second (n1=63 patients with VD stage I) and the third (n1=66 patients with VD stage II) groups consisted of the patients, who underwent treatment at the clinical department of the Research Institute of Occupational Hygiene and Occupational Diseases of Kharkiv National Medical University of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine. DS determination was carried out according to the method of K. M. Kosenko (Patent No. 57512, Ukraine) for in-patients and controls (during medical checkups) using the following indices: PMA, OHI-S, DMFT, with assessment of vacuum-pressory resistance of gingival capillaries (VPRC) (according to V. I. Kulazhenko) and community periodontal index of treatment needs (CPITN). SOD content was determined by the nonenzymatic method; CAT content was revealed spectrophotometrically. Primary data were statistically processed with the determination of accuracy by Student's test.

Results: SOD content depending upon PMA intensity in VD patients ranged from 14.1±0.2 U/min to 15.7±0.5 U/min , was reliably (p<0.05) lower in patients with VD versus the controls (17.8±0.2 U/min and 14.2±0.2 U/min respectively, when PMA>2.1) and did not differ depending upon VD severity (15.7±0.5 U/min in VD stage I and 15.3±0.3 U/min in VD stage II, respectively). SOD content in OF in patients depending upon their OHI-S ranged from 13.5±0.3 U/min to 16.3±0.2 U/min and was reliably (p<0.05) lower in patients with OHI-S≥1.7 U. A comparative analysis showed that the activity of the enzymatic protection of the periodontal membrane could be also determined by the state of hard tissues, in particular by such DS index as DFTM. The activity of SOD in VD stage II was found to be reliably (p<0.05) reduced in patients with DFTM index exceeding 15 pts. A somewhat different pattern of SOD activity was found in OF in patients with VD stage I: SOD activity in OF was similar in all DFTM indices and it became reduced depending upon an increase of DFTM index. SOD content depending upon VPRC index in patients with VD ranged from 10.7±0.5 U/min to 16.8±0.3 U/min and was reliably (p<0.05) lower in cases with VPRC index ≤40 sec. CAT content depending upon PMA intensity in VD patients ranged from 4.6±0.4 U/min to 11.3±0.3 U/min and was reliably (p<0.05) higher in patients with VD stage I versus the controls and differed according to the severity. CAT content in OF in patients depending upon OHI-S ranged from 5.2±0.2 U/min to 10.1±0.3 U/min, was reliably (p<0.05) lower in cases with OHI-S ≥1.7 U, did not differ from the indices observed in the control group and was also found to be reliably lower in patients with VD stage II versus those with VD stage I (7.3±0.3 U/min and 8.6±0.2 U/min, respectively, when OHI-S ranged within 0.7÷1.6 U). CAT content in OF depending upon VPSC index in patients with VD ranged from 5.8±0.2 U/min to 8.6±0.6 U/min and was reliably (p<0.05) lower in cases with VPSC index ≤40 sec. Thus, CAT activity in OF in patients was reliably (p<0.05) reduced (in VPRC>40 sec it was equal to 7.8±0.2 U/min, and in VPRC≤40 sec it was 8.6±0.1 U/ min) in VD stage I with decreased VPRC.

Conclusions: A trend (p>0.05) towards an increase in SOD activity in VD stage I versus the controls was revealed, whereas VD stage II demonstrated a reliable (p<0.05) reduction of the above activity. At the same time, an unsatisfactory state of oral hygiene was shown to promote inhibition of the enzymatic protection of their periodontal membrane in patients with VD stage I. A trend (p>0.05) towards an increase of SOD activity in VD stage I versus the controls was revealed, whereas VD stage II demonstrated a reliable (p<0.05) reduction of the above activity. The assessment carried out in cases requiring combined treatment with surgical or non-surgical debridement and also in patients with supraor subgingival dental calculus found out that SOD activity was reliably reduced only in cases with VD stage II. CAT activity assessment in OF in VD patients having different levels of CPITN showed that the above activity in persons requiring combined treatment (including prosthodontic treatment; CPITN≥3.1points) was markedly and reliably reduced. All the above facts determine peculiarities in oral treatment strategies for this group of patients.