ADVANCES IN PERIODONTAL DIAGNOSIS 10 - POTENTIAL MARKERS OF BONE-RESORPTION

This paper describes the markers of bone resorption which might serve as potential markers for periodontal disease activity. it firstly desc ribes the bone specific proteins which are involved in bone mineralisa tion and the role they play in this process. It then explains how they may pass into GCF and reviews those studies which have attempted to r elate these factors to periodontal disease severity and activity. It n ext discusses the difficulties in isolating and detecting these factor s in GCF and their possible use as markers for periodontal disease act ivity. As the final part in the series it lastly discusses the possibl e uses of predictive diagnostic tests of periodontal disease activity in dental practice.