Evaluation of Gingival Crevicular Fluid Macrophage Migration Inhibitory Factor in Various Periodontal Conditions with Their Diagnostic Ability

Abstract

Objectives: To profile the concentration of macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) in gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) in periodontal health, biofilm-induced gingivitis, and periodontitis, and to evaluate its ability to discriminate between these periodontal conditions.Materials and Methods: This was a case-control study in which GCF samples were collected from three groups: gingivitis, periodontitis, and periodontal health (control). Plaque index, bleeding on probing, probing pocket depth, and clinical attachment loss were measured as full-mouth clinical periodontal parameters. Gingival crevicular fluid macrophage migration inhibitory factor was evaluated using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.Results: The concentration of (MIF) in the collected GCF was significantly higher in the gingivitis group (471.2 ± 69.8) than in the other groups. The biomarker was strongly correlated with bleeding on probing percentage, plaque index percentage, and clinical attachment loss across all subjects. The AUC was (0.9942) for healthy vs. periodontitis (1) for healthy vs. gingivitis, also (0.9794) for periodontitis vs. gingivitis, along with high sensitivity and specificity. These were the results of the ROC analysis, which showed excellent diagnostic accuracy for this biomarker in distinguishing periodontal health from disease.Conclusions: In gingivitis and periodontitis, GCF levels of MIF were considerably higher than in periodontal health. MIF showed strong positive correlations with key clinical parameters, reflecting its role in the disease activity. Its exceptional diagnostic accuracy in distinguishing between diseases and periodontal health was supported by the ROC analysis in the present study. Therefore, MIF may be a reliable biomarker for the early identification and categorization of periodontal diseases.