The vascular supply of the periodontal membrane

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Abstract
The blood supply to the periodontal membrane of 84 human tooth sockets was studied by determining the number and size of the perforations in the alveolar wall. A special impression and duplication technique was used to produce a relief of the alveolar wall. This was next drawn on paper in a stereo‐microscope. By means of the measure‐and‐weigh method, calculations were made of the number and size of perforations per unit surface area in different regions of each alveolus and in different alveoli, and of the number of perforations per sq. mm. After it had been demonstrated that, in the rat, correlation existed in the alveolar wall between both the number and the size of perforations and the vessels that they carry, the size and the number of perforations were taken as a measure of the blood supply to the periodontal membrane.The results, which were all tested statistically, showed that the blood supply to the periodontal membrane increases gradually from tooth to tooth towards the posterior sections of the dentition, and this increase is similar in both jaws. The blood supply of the individual periodontal membrane is greatest in the gingival and least in the middle third. There are no significant differences in the blood supply to the four surfaces of a socket.The number of small perforations with a diameter of less than 150 μ is considerably greater than the number of large ones, and the latter are most frequently located in the gingival and apical thirds of the alveolus. The significance of these findings is discussed.