Objectives: The current study was conducted to investigate whether plasma levels of markers of coagulation and fibrinolysis were elevated in patients with destructive periodontal disease in comparison to healthy control subjects.

Methods: Untreated patients with moderate periodontitis (MP: N=55), severe periodontitis (SP: N=18) and periodontally healthy controls (C: N=40) were recruited. Plasma levels of von Willebrand factor (vWF), fibrinogen, prothrombin fragment 1+2 (F1+2) and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) were measured as markers of activation of coagulation and fibrinolysis. Plasma levels of C-Reactive Protein (CRP) and leucocytes count were measured as indicators of systemic inflammation.

Results: The median plasma levels for the C-, MP- and SP- groups with regard to PAI-1 were 0.20, 2.90, 12.75 au/ml and for fibrinogen were 2.9, 3.2 and 3.1 g/L respectively. The analysis showed statistically significant differences among groups for PAI-1 (p=0.001) and fibrinogen (p=0.027). Median values for vWF (76.0, 90.0 and 98.5%, for C, MP and SP respectively) showed a trend towards higher levels for the severe group (p=0.127). The F1+2 levels did not differ between periodontitis groups and controls. Higher levels of CRP (p=0.035) and elevated numbers of leukocytes (p=0.008) in patients compared to controls, confirmed that patients had signs of systemic inflammation.

Conclusions: Periodontitis may result in systemic inflammation and in this way provokes a pro-coagulant state. This could be one of several factors that link periodontitis to cardiovascular-diseases.

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