Socioeconomic status and self-reported periodontal symptoms in community-dwelling individuals: data from the Korea Community Health Surveys of 2011 and 2013

Periodontal health status in patients with lung cancer: Case-control study

Objective

The objective of this study was to assess the periodontal health status of individuals with lung cancer in the North Indian population. In addition, the study aimed to determine the levels of human beta-defensin2 (Hbd-2) in the gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) and serum samples collected from the participants.

Methods

The study consisted of a total of 90 participants, who were categorized into three groups: Group 1 included 30 healthy individuals, Group 2 comprised 30 patients with chronic periodontitis, and Group 3 involved 30 patients diagnosed with both lung cancer and chronic periodontitis. Various periodontal parameters, including plaque index, gingival index, probing pocket depth, and clinical attachment level (CAL), were assessed in addition to the analysis of human beta defensin2 levels in both the GCF and serum samples of all participants.

Results

The study results revealed that all clinical parameters assessed were higher in Group 3 compared to both Group 2 and Group 1. Specifically, the levels of hBD-2 in the GCF were measured as 52.29 ± 46.41 pg/mL in Group 1, 27.15 ± 28.76 pg/mL in Group 2, and 86.01 ± 68.82 pg/mL in Group 3. When comparing the hBD-2 levels in serum, the values were found to be 813.72 ± 269.43 pg/mL in Group 1, 591.50 ± 263.91 pg/mL in Group 2, and 1093.04 ± 674.55 pg/mL in Group 3. These intergroup comparisons indicate variations in hBD-2 levels among the different groups.

Conclusions

The study findings demonstrated significantly higher clinical and biochemical markers in patients with both lung cancer and chronic periodontitis, in comparison to individuals with chronic periodontitis alone and healthy participants. These results suggest that Hbd-2 could potentially serve as a valuable diagnostic biomarker for identifying and distinguishing individuals with both lung cancer and chronic periodontitis.

Application of geospatial information systems (GIS) for assessment of the distribution of periodontal disease in Makassar City, South Sulawesi Province, Indonesia

Addressing the presence of periodontal disease requires a high level of expertise to detect the disease as well as effective communication to understand patients' problems. Based on basic health data from 2018, the prevalence of this problem in Indonesia is approximately 74%. This study examined the distribution of periodontal conditions in March 2021 in Makassar City, the capital of South Sulawesi Province. To determine the distribution of periodontal disease, a questionnaire was used to find out the severity of this issue. A descriptive observational method, used with a cross-sectional design and a web-based geospatial information system (GIS) application linked to ArcGIS, was conducted. The results showed thatout of the 15 districts in Makassar City, the island district of Sangkarranghad had the highest presence of periodontal disease. Three other districts were classified as also belonging to this low category, while 11 other ones exhibited a medium disease incidence score.

Relationship between the Social Development Index and Self-Reported Periodontal Conditions

Inequalities in oral health are influenced by the social strata of the population. Few studies have focused on the multitude of factors related to social development as indicators of living conditions and periodontal health status. The aim of this study is to evaluate the association between self-reported periodontal conditions and the Social Development Index (SDI). A cross-sectional validated questionnaire was carried out among 1294 Mexican adults. Descriptive statistics and multivariate logistic regression models were used to identify the best predictors of self-reported periodontal conditions. Bone loss reporting was used as a proxy for the presence of periodontal disease. We found that higher global scores on the SDI and quality and available space in the home (QASH) increase the probability of having bone loss. Global SDI (OR = 7.27) and higher QASH (OR = 3.66) were indeed the leading societal factors related to periodontal disease. These results have pointed out how SDI and its indicators, in particular QASH, can be used to further explore inequities related to privileged access to dental care in the context of periodontal diseases.

Systematic Review of the Literature on Dental Caries and Periodontal Disease in Socio-Economically Disadvantaged Individuals

Dental caries and periodontal disease represent a health problem and a social cost for the entire population, and in particular for socio-economically disadvantaged individuals who are less resistant to disease. The aim of this review is to estimate the prevalence and severity of the two dental pathologies, caries and periodontal disease, in the different classes of socio-economically disadvantaged subjects and to understand which of them are most affected. A systematic search of the literature was performed in MEDLINE (via PubMed), EMBASE and Web of Science after establishing a suitable search strategy for each database, using keywords related to socio-economically vulnerable classes and health outcomes. Socio-economically disadvantaged individuals are more susceptible to tooth decay and periodontal disease (with relative tooth loss) than non-vulnerable people. Additionally, when multiple vulnerabilities are combined in the same subject, these oral diseases worsen. There is no type of vulnerability more affected by caries and periodontitis than others, since overall they all have severe disease indices. The data from this systematic literature review might be useful for health policy makers looking to allocate more resources and services to socially disadvantaged individuals, resulting in making them more resilient to oral disease due to their social marginalization.

Prevalence and Associated Factors of Self-Reported Gingival Bleeding: A Multicenter Study in France

Gingival bleeding (GB) is a common sign of gingival inflammation which indicates the presence of periodontal diseases. This cross-sectional multicenter survey aimed to assess the prevalence of self-reported gingival bleeding (SRGB) in French adults and identify the main associated factors. A questionnaire-based interview was randomly proposed to 794 individuals in four French cities (Nancy, Montpellier, Paris, and Rennes). Subjects were recruited in preventive medicine centers (50%), railway stations, and malls (50%). The questionnaire comprised 25 items: SRGB characteristics, socioeconomic variables, oral hygiene habits, use of drugs, and anxiety level. The overall prevalence of SRGB was 63.2% [59.8%; 66.6%], with 58.7% bleeding after toothbrushing and 4.5% spontaneous bleeding. Males reported significantly lower SRGB prevalence than females (p = 0.04). The distribution of SRGB frequency was inversely proportional to age (p < 0.0001). No association between drug use and SRGB was found. The people interviewed in the preventive medicine centers reported the highest frequency of SRGB (p < 0.0001). In the multivariate logistic model, SRGB was significantly related to occupation, smoking status, brushing frequency, and anxiety level. In conclusion, SRGB was prevalent in more than half of the sample and was mainly associated with age, toothbrushing frequency, and anxiety level. Thus, providing information to patients about the importance of this oral manifestation may play an important role in preventing periodontal diseases.

Poor oral health is associated with asthma, allergic rhinitis, and atopic dermatitis in Korean adolescents: A cross-sectional study

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between oral health and asthma/allergic rhinitis/atopic dermatitis in a large representative Korean adolescent population.A total of 136,027 participants (aged 12-18 years old) were selected from the Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey 2014 to 2015. The subjects' history of asthma, allergic rhinitis, and atopic dermatitis was determined by inquiring whether they had been diagnosed by a medical doctor within the previous 12 months or throughout life. Participants were asked if they had experienced the following 6 symptoms regarding oral health in the past 12 months: "chipped or broken tooth," "toothache when eating or drinking," "throbbing and sore tooth," "sore and bleeding gums," "pain in the tongue or inside the cheeks," and "unpleasant breath." The participants were divided into 3 groups according to the number of oral health-related symptoms as follows: good oral health (symptoms = 0), moderate oral health (symptoms = 1), and poor oral health (symptoms = 2-6). Multiple logistic regression analyses calculated the adjusted odds ratios (aORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for asthma/allergic rhinitis/atopic dermatitis within the past 12 months and throughout life among groups with oral health-related symptom groups.Older age, female sex, fewer days of physical activity, lower parental economic level, lower parental education level, smoking, and frequent alcohol consumption were associated with poor oral health (each P < .001). The aORs for asthma/allergic rhinitis/atopic dermatitis were 1.48 (95% CI = 1.34-1.63, P < .001), 1.42 (95% CI = 1.36-1.47, P < .001), and 1.35 (95% CI = 1.28-1.43, P < .001), respectively, in the poor oral health group compared to the good oral health group.Poor oral health was significantly correlated with the prevalence of asthma/allergic rhinitis/atopic dermatitis within the past 12 months and throughout life in Korean adolescents. Based on our comparative data, oral health-related education may be considered to adolescents with allergic disease for good oral health.

Did Expanded Dental Insurance Improve Chewing Ability in the Older Korean Population? Results of an Interrupted Time-series Analysis

Background

In 2012, the Korean National Health Insurance extended its coverage to include denture services for older adults. We examined whether the new policy resulted in improved chewing ability in the eligible population.

Methods

We used interrupted time-series (ITS) analysis, a quasi-experimental design, to analyze the effect of the policy. We used data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted from 2007 to 2016–2018. The study population consisted of two groups: the treatment group, aged 65 years or older and eligible for the dental insurance benefit; and the control group, those younger than 65 years and ineligible. The main evaluated outcome was self-reported chewing difficulty.

Results

The ITS analysis showed that chewing difficulty decreased annually by 0.93% (95% CI, −1.30 to −0.55%) and 0.38% (95% CI, −0.59 to −0.16%) after the policy extension in the older than 65 and younger than 65 groups, respectively. However, we could not conclude that the insurance extension affected chewing difficulty because there was a decrease in the control group as well.

Conclusion

Chewing ability improved in both older and younger adults regardless of dental insurance coverage for older adults. Other exogenous factors probably led to the improvements in chewing ability as well as dental insurance benefits.