Correlation between salivary IL-10 and clinical features in patients with periodontitis

Abstract

Introduction: Periodontitis is an inflammatory condition that leads to the destruction of the tooth-supporting tissues. Its pathogenesis is driven by imbalance in cytokines. Interleukin-10 (IL-10), an anti-inflammatory cytokine, may regulate periodontal inflammation by antagonizing proinflammatory mediators. However, the precise correlation of this polymorphism with disease severity and clinical profiles is unknown.

Objectives: The present study sought to determine the salivary levels of IL-10 in periodontitis patients and healthy controls, and investigate the possible associations between IL-10 concentrations and major clinical periodontal parameters: PPD (Probing Pocket Depth), CAL (Clinical Attachment Loss), BOP (Bleeding on Probing), PI (Plaque Index) and GI (Gingival Index).

Methods: A case-control study tested at Al-Najaf Center for Dentistry clinics from April 2024 to February 2025 on (65) diagnosed periodontitis cases and (45) healthy controls matched with age and gender. Unstimulated whole saliva was collected in the morning under standardized conditions and tested for IL-10 with a commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit. Clinical periodontal data were also collected and severity-classified. The statistical analyses were conducted using SPSS version 25 and t–test, ANOVA, and the Pearson’s correlation tested for group differences and associations between IL-10 levels with clinical symptoms. Results: The mean salivary IL-10 level in patients with periodontitis was significantly higher (42.35 ± 11.68 pg/mL) than that of controls (35.27 ± 9.84 pg/mL) (p = 0.023). Levels of IL-10 were significantly correlated with the severity of PPD and CAL (F = 3.71, p = 0.03; F = 7.89, p = 0.001; respectively). Correlation analysis showed moderate to strong positive correlations of IL-10 with PPD (r = 0.45, p 0.02).

Conclusion: High salivary IL-10 levels are related to periodontitis and reflect positively with parameters of tissue destruction, especially PPD and CAL. These results imply that, as a marker of disease severity, IL-10 could be a non-invasive useful biomarker for the progression of periodontal diseases.

Keywords:

Interleukin-10, periodontitis, PPD, CAL, BOP, PI, GI

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