Biosensors as Point -of-Care-Testing (POCT) for Diagnosis and Monitoring of Periodontitis: A Comparative Review

. Introduction: Periodontitis is a non-reversible inflammation of the peridontium, that if left untreated will eventually lead to teeth loss. Currently, the routine diagnosis of periodontal disease is primarily based on clinical (oral inspection, palpation and probing) and radiographic measures of periodontal tissue loss. Whilst these parameters are very useful, they only provide information on tissues destruction that already taken place hence are of limited use for prevention and early diagnosis. More non-invasive diagnosis methods have been developed, utilizing saliva from patients and immobilization of specific analytes onto a biosensor platform. Objective: This study aimed to compare various types of biosensors as point-of-care- testing for diagnosis and monitoring of periodontal disease. Methodology: A systematic literature search was performed in three public databases; Pubmed, Google Scholar and Science Direct. Search was carried out without any restrictions on date of publication however restricted to original research that developed biosensor platform for detection of periodontal disease using patient saliva samples. Results: Literature search resulted in seven studies that described various biosensors as point-of-care device capable of detecting specific analytes or biomarkers that is associated with periodontitis. Two of these devices used proteins derived from bacteria which causes periodontitis. Each biosensor has different detection mechanisms and varies in detection limit of analytes tested. Conclusion: Development of biosensors capable for detection of saliva-based analytes as a non-invasive diagnosis point-of-care test could serve as an adjunct to complement existing routine diagnosis method.