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The infectious disease nature of periodontal disease. Here I will explore evidence for transmissibility of pathogens between persons by saliva transfer. This transmissibility is responsible for the familial pattern of disease development. We were originally taught that genetic predisposition to periodontitis caused this family pattern of disease. Now we know that a patient must have anaerobic pathogens in order to develop disease – and that genetic predisposition will govern the severity of disease but will not cause disease.

There is ample scientific evidence to indicate transmissibility of the suspected periodontal pathogens and the cariogenic bacteria streptococcus mutans. 1-7