Our data indicate that the patients with Behçet's disease generally exhibit clinical findings of established periodontal disease. Decreased antibody responses to early colonizers of both supra- and subgingival plaque were observed along with the elevation in antibody levels to A. actinomycetemcomitans. These results suggest that the bacterial plaque ecology and/or immune responses to these microorganisms may be affected in Behçet's disease which could lead to changes in the expression of periodontal disease.

Our data indicate that PCNA expression in inflamed gingiva is higher in older subjects. Furthermore, a significant correlation was noted between aging and PCNA expression in inflamed gingiva. As there is no increase in mucosal epithelial thickness despite increased proliferation, we speculate that the duration of the PCNA+ phase in cell cycle may be longer in older subjects. This study also implies that PCNA immunolocalization can be used as an index of the state of cell proliferation in both biological and pathological events of the gingiva and/or other mucosal tissues.

Our data indicate that proliferative activity is observed in the suprabasal layers and, less frequently, in the basal layer. Inflammation caused increased proliferative activity. However, this positive effect of inflammation on epithelial cell proliferation decreased significantly with a lack of saliva. Therefore, it appears that saliva-derived biological mediators may also contribute to increased proliferative activity observed during inflammation.

These results indicate that gingival tissues may also be involved in EBA. Uneventful wound healing after periodontal surgery in this case suggests that periodontal surgery can be performed in patients with EBA. Moreover, both our clinical and histopathologic findings imply that gingivectomy proves useful in maintaining gingival integrity in these patients. Our data may also suggest that the patients with EBA are highly likely to develop dental caries.