Fig. 1

Scatter plots of periodontal pathogen counts from salivary and subgingival plaque from the deepest pockets for individual subjects. Correlations of periodontal pathogen counts in saliva and subgingival plaque from the deepest pockets were statistically significant. The correlation coefficient of bacterial counts in saliva and subgingival plaque from the deepest pockets was the highest for P. gingivalis (panel a) when compared with other pathogens (panel b, c). Note, for each of the three bacterial species, that bacterial counts were below the limit of detection in some subgingival plaque samples; this observation was most notable for A. actinomycetemcomitans, which could not be detected in >95% of samples (panel c).