title: Inverse association between periodontitis and respiratory allergies in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  In a general adult population, we have demonstrated an inverse association between periodontitis and respiratory allergies that is in line with the hygiene hypothesis suggesting a protective effect of infections against the development of allergies. The objective of the present study was to investigate the association between periodontitis and respiratory allergies in a type 1 diabetes mellitus population.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study population comprised 170 patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus aged 17-80 years. Respiratory allergies were present in 22 subjects. The attachment loss (AL) was measured. Periodontitis was defined according to the percentage of surfaces that exceeded 3 mm AL (healthy, mild, moderate, severe periodontal conditions).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Our adjusted analyses revealed an inverse association between periodontitis and respiratory allergies. For increasing AL, a trend towards a decreasing risk was present for respiratory allergies (p(trend)<0.05). Compared with subjects with healthy periodontal conditions, individuals with severe periodontal conditions had the lowest risk of respiratory allergies [odds ratios (OR) 0.06 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.01-0.39)], followed by subjects with moderate AL [OR 0.14 (95% CI 0.03-0.63)] and mild AL [OR 0.32 (95% CI 0.09-1.08)].
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There is a strong inverse association between periodontitis and respiratory allergies in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus. These findings further support the hygiene hypothesis.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Community Medicine, Ernst Moritz Arndt University Greifswald, Germany. nele.friedrich@uni-greifswald.de
authors.forename: Nele
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Friedrich
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kocher
authors.forename: Henri
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wallaschofski
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Schwahn
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lüdemann
authors.forename: Wolfgang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Kerner
authors.forename: Henry
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Völzke
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000150:complications; D004245:DMF Index; D003922:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 / Q000150:complications*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009910:Oral Hygiene; D010518:Periodontitis / Q000150:complications*; D012130:Respiratory Hypersensitivity / Q000150:complications*