Background: Transplant immunosuppression using cyclosporine (CsA) leads to renal dysfunction as well as gingival overgrowth. The underlying alteration in both these lesions is characterized by an excessive accumulation of extracellular matrix components (fibrosis). To investigate the relationship between CsA-induced nephrotoxicity and gingival overgrowth, the renal function as well as the occurrence of gingival overgrowth was evaluated in pediatric renal transplant recipients: 38 boys and 30 girls, ranging in age from 2 to 20 years, who had been on a CsA-based immunosuppressive regimen for at least 12 months.
Methods: Gingival overgrowth was determined on the basis of measurements of sulcus depth and was diagnosed as positive when the probing depth was > or = 4 mm without exhibiting a loss of periodontal attachment. Renal function tests were performed using inulin and para-aminohippuric acid clearances for evaluating glomerular filtration rate, effective renal plasma flow (ERPF), and filtration fraction (FF).
Results: Nineteen percent of the children exhibited gingival overgrowth. The occurrence of gingival overgrowth was positively related (P<0.05) to the mean oral daily dose of CsA, the mean CsA trough blood level, and concomitant administration of nifedipine. The children who were on antihypertensive treatment exhibited lower ERPF and significantly higher FF than the normotensive children. The mean FF value was significantly higher (P<0.05) in the children with gingival overgrowth than in those without gingival overgrowth, whereas glomerular filtration rate and ERPF did not differ between the two groups.
Conclusions: The study suggests that there is a positive correlation between the degree of gingival enlargement and changes in renal function expressed as filtration fraction.