Abstract
Background. As bacterial etiology could not support and explain various aspects of periodontal disease, herpes virus is
now proposed to be one of the factors responsible for the periodontal destruction. The aim of the present study was to
detect the presence of Herpes simplex virus (HSV) in patients with chronic generalized periodontitis.
Methods. Eleven patients were consecutively selected for the study, of which 3 were diagnosed with moderate chronic
generalized periodontitis and 8 with severe chronic generalized periodontitis. Subgingival material was taken from the
deepest pocket of the dentition from every study subject, before the commencement of any procedure and polymerase chain
reaction (PCR) assay was used to detect the presence of HSV-1 and -2.
Results. HSV-1 and -2 DNA was not detected in any of the samples.
Conclusion. This study is in contrast with previous studies and questions the proposed pathogenic role and clinical relevance
of herpes virus in periodontitis.