Abstract

Objectives: The objectives were to determine the prevalence of Candida albicans in lesions of necrotising periodontal disease (NPD) and on the tongue of patients and to compare the fingerprinting patterns of C. albicans isolates from the two oral sites. Methods: Microbiological specimens were taken from NPD lesions and the tongue of 87 patients and cultured on Sabouraud Dextrose and CHROMagar, followed by treating patients according to a standard protocol. DNA fingerprinting, using restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) with a 32P-labelled Ca3 probe, was performed on paired isolates of C. albicans simultaneously isolated from NPD lesions and the tongue. Results: C. albicans was isolated from 47 (54%) patients in total, from only the tongue in 39 (44.8%), simultaneously from the tongue and diseased sites in 7 (8.0%) and only from diseased site in 1 patient (1.1%). The DNA fingerprinting patterns of the isolates were similar within each pair but differed between the 7 pairs, without any evidence of a predominant genetic subtype among the isolates. The clade affiliation resembled that of previously fingerprinted isolates obtained from the region. No statistically significant correlation was demonstrated between the extent (p = 0.4621) or severity (p = 0.3365) of NPD lesions and the presence of yeasts (Fisher's Exact Test). NPD in all patients presenting for a follow-up visit had resolved with conventional treatment and without the addition of antifungal agents. Conclusion: No association between C. albicans and NPD could be demonstrated and evidence is presented that it is unlikely that the C. albicans isolated from NPD represent a pathogenic sub-group and are more likely to be contaminants from elsewhere in the mouth.

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