Periodontal disease is associated with gestational diabetes mellitus: a case-control study.
BACKGROUND
Few studies have specifically examined the relationship between periodontal disease and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). The objective of this study was to examine whether maternal periodontal disease is associated with GDM.


METHODS
A case-control study was conducted of 53 pregnant women with GDM and 106 pregnant women without GDM at Woman's Hospital, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The periodontal examinations were performed by a calibrated dentist who was masked to the diabetic status of the pregnant women. Periodontitis was defined as the presence of any site with a probing depth (PD) >or=4 mm or a clinical attachment loss (AL) >or=4 mm. The severity of periodontal disease was measured in quartiles of PD and clinical AL. Univariable analysis and multivariable logistic regression were used to examine the relationships between periodontal disease and GDM.


RESULTS
The percentage of periodontitis was 77.4% in women with GDM and 57.5% in women without GDM, with an odds ratio (OR) of 2.5 and a 95% confidence interval (CI) of 1.2 to 5.3. After adjusting for confounding variables of maternal age, parity, race, marital status, education, family income, smoking, alcohol consumption, systemic antibiotics during pregnancy, family history of diabetes, income, dental insurance coverage, and body mass index, the adjusted OR (95% CI) was 2.6 (1.1 to 6.1). The adjusted ORs (95% CIs) of GDM comparing the highest-to-lowest quartiles of PD and clinical AL were 3.8 (1.0 to 14.0) and 4.5 (1.2 to 16.9).


CONCLUSIONS
This study supports the hypothesis of an association between periodontal disease and GDM.
Xiong
Xu
X
Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA. xxiong@tulane.edu
Elkind-Hirsch
Karen E
KE
Vastardis
Sotirios
S
Delarosa
Robert L
RL
Pridjian
Gabriella
G
Buekens
Pierre
P
D000428:Alcohol Drinking; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015992:Body Mass Index; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003729:Dental Care; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000235:genetics; D016640:Diabetes, Gestational; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D007347:Insurance, Dental; D017533:Marital Status; D008423:Maternal Age; D009910:Oral Hygiene; D010298:Parity; D017622:Periodontal Attachment Loss / Q000150:complications; D010510:Periodontal Diseases / Q000150:complications*; D010512:Periodontal Index; D010514:Periodontal Pocket / Q000150:complications; D010518:Periodontitis / Q000150:complications; D011247:Pregnancy; D044469:Racial Groups; D012907:Smoking; D012923:Social Class
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents