Beschreibung:
<jats:p><jats:bold>Background:</jats:bold> Limited information is available to determine if there is a distinction in local cellular immunity between adult and early‐onset periodontitis. Furthermore, the effect of scaling and root planing on various lymphocyte subsets is sparsely described.</jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Methods:</jats:bold> Clinical measurements were recorded and gingival biopsies were performed before and after scaling and root planing in 10 subjects with adult (AP) and in 10 with early‐onset periodontitis (EOP).The specimens were cut into serial sections and, using the alkaline phosphatase‐anti‐alkaline phosphatase technique, monoclonal antibodies to CD20 (B‐cells), CD30 (plasma cells), and CD45RO (T‐memory cells) were applied, as well as polyclonal antibodies to alpha, gamma, and mu chains (Ig A, G, and M). Areas showing the largest infiltration cells were counted.</jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Results:</jats:bold> Mean counts of all cell phenotypes in the AP versus the EOP group did not show any significant differences before therapy (<jats:italic>P</jats:italic> >0.05). Following scaling and root planing, numbers of all phenotypes decreased in both groups. Comparing the data before and after therapy, P values were >0.05 in the AP group, except for IgA‐positive cells. In the EOP group, the differences before and after therapy reached statistical signifi‐cance (<jats:italic>P</jats:italic> <0.05) for all cell counts, except for IgM‐positive cells. Furthermore, reduction of probing depth and gain of clinical attachment reached the 0.05 level of statistical significance only in EOP subjects.</jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Conclusions:</jats:bold> Local cellular immunity in patients with adult onset periodontitis does not appear to differ from the immune response in patients with early onset periodontitis. Scaling and root planing causes a decrease in the inflammatory cells subsets tested, however, this decline seems to be more pronounced in EOP than in AP subjects. <jats:italic>J Periodontol 2000;71:1561‐1566.</jats:italic></jats:p>