Selected Abstracts from the Annual Meeting of the Scandinavian Society of Periodontology, Bergen, June 9–12 2011

Background: Over the last decades, periodontal diseases have been discussed as a possible risk factor for systemic diseases with an inflammatory origin. Objective: To investigate if adult patients with periodontitis attending the dental school in Huddinge, Sweden, had more signs of systemic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus, pulmonary diseases, specifically asthma bronchiale, compared to healthy patients or those patients with gingivitis. Design: In this retrospective study, dental charts were examined where the periodontal diagnoses were known. A total of 325 patients with severe periodontitis and 149 patients without periodontitis born 1928Á1968 were identified. The diagnosis regarding the systemic diseases was self-reported. Odd ratios for all cardiovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus and pulmonary diseases were calculated with a logistic regression model adjusted for age, gender, and smoking. Results: A total of 44.3% of those with severe periodontitis also had cardiovascular diseases, 19.1% had asthma bronchiale and 21.2% suffered from diabetes mellitus. Among the controls 30.9% had cardiovascular disease, 23.5% suffered from asthma and 6.7% had diabetes mellitus. Both among the controls and among those with severe periodontitis hypertension was the most frequent diagnosis. There was a significant association between periodontitis and cardiovascular disease (OR 01.79 (0.0143)), but not between asthma bronchiale and periodontitis. The risk for diabetes mellitus was greater among those with periodontitis, OR 0 2.95 (B0.0001). Conclusion: This study shows that there is an association between periodontitis and certain systemic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes mellitus. However, the underlying mechanism is unknown and it is too early to conclude whether periodontitis is a predictor for other systemic inflammatory diseases. in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Background: In advanced forms of chronic periodontitis, changed or elevated parameters for a number of blood markers have been detected (total cholesterol, LDL, HDL, triglycerides, fibrinogen, CRP and other inflammatory mediators). As important risk markers for cardiovascular disease (CVD) these findings also indicate possible links between periodontitis and CVD. Reasonable explanations could be the direct spread of periodontal bacteria and their products into the circulation triggering the atherosclerotic process and/or the release of host derived inflammatory mediators from chronically inflamed tissues. Several inflammatory disorders (systemic lupus erythematosus, idiopathic juvenile arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis) and other chronic infections associated with inflammation, are also associated with an increased incidence of CVD. In general, exacerbations of these disorders are characterized by activation of leukocytes as well as increased or changed levels …