Prevalence of Epstein-Barr virus type 1 in patients with chronic periodontitis by nested-PCR

The present study evaluated the subgingival presence of Epstein-Barr virus type 1 (EBV-1) in patients with chronic periodontitis with nested-PCR. Subgingival plaque samples from 61 patients with chronic periodontitis with Probing Depth (PD) > or = 6 and 40 healthy controls were collected by sterile curette. DNA was extracted. A nested Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) method determined presence of EBV-1. The study included 61 patients (34 women, 27 men; 24-69 years of age; mean 43) and 40 periodontally health controls (22 Women, 18 men, 21-69 years in age; mean 41.35%). EBV type 1 was detected in 37 samples (60.7%) and 1 samples (2.5%) of chronic periodontitis patients and healthy subjects, respectively. This study demonstrated that EBV-1 infection is associated with the activity of chronic periodontitis.