Inverse association between periodontitis and respiratory allergies in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus.
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.
Friedrich
Nele
N
Institute for Community Medicine, Ernst Moritz Arndt University Greifswald, Germany. nele.friedrich@uni-greifswald.de
Kocher
Thomas
T
Wallaschofski
Henri
H
Schwahn
Christian
C
Lüdemann
Jan
J
Kerner
Wolfgang
W
Völzke
Henry
H
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*