Periodontal care may improve endothelial function.

Background: Periodontitis is a chronic, infectious, insidious disease of the tooth-supporting structures that causes a general inflammatory response. The aims of this study were to determine whether periodontitis is associated with endothelial dysfunction leading to cardiovascular events and whether proper management of periodontal disease would improve endothelial function and prevent cardiovascular events in the future.

Methods: Twenty-two patients (12 women, 10 men; 40+/-5 years old) took part in the study.

Endothelial function in patients with sickle cell anemia during and after sickle cell crises.

Background: Prior studies have demonstrated increased adherence of sickle cell erythrocytes to vascular endothelial cells. While decreased production of nitric oxide and increased production of adhesion molecules have been implicated in this pathophysiology, the relative contribution of these mechanisms during acute sickle cell crises as compared to steady state conditions have not been elucidated.

Methods And Results: We studied 10 consecutive young adult patients presenting with a sickle cell crisis.