Associations Among Oral Hygiene Behavior and Hypertension Prevalence and Control: The 2008 to 2010 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.
BACKGROUND
Recently, a positive association has been reported between hypertension and periodontitis. The authors hypothesized that oral hygiene promotion activities could have an effect on hypertension prevention or the degree of hypertension control. Therefore, this study examines the relationship between oral hygiene behaviors and hypertension using data from a nationally representative survey, the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES).


METHODS
Using data from the KNHANES (2008 to 2010), 19,560 adults with complete data sets were included. The authors analyzed the relationship of the prevalence and control rate of hypertension and numerous variables, including oral hygiene behavior.


RESULTS
As the frequency of toothbrushing increased, the prevalence of hypertension decreased in multivariate analysis after adjusting for various factors, including the presence of periodontitis. In a subgroup analysis, this relationship was also observed in individuals without periodontitis. In particular, systolic blood pressure levels progressively decreased as the frequency of toothbrushing and the number of secondary oral products used increased. The adjusted odds ratio of hypertension prevalence was 1.195 (95% confidence interval 1.033 to 1.383) for individuals who brushed their teeth hardly ever or once daily compared with those who brushed after every meal.


CONCLUSIONS
Individuals with poor oral hygiene behavior are more likely to have a higher prevalence of hypertension, even before periodontitis is shown. Oral hygiene behavior may be considered an independent risk indicator for hypertension, and maintaining good oral hygiene may help to prevent and control hypertension.
Department of Internal Medicine, Myongji Hospital, Goyang, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea.
Hye Min
HM
Choi
Department of Biostatistics, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Kyungdo
K
Han
Department of Biostatistics, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Yong-Gyu
YG
Park
Department of Periodontics, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea.
Jun-Beom
JB
Park
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000502:physiology; D003742:Dental Devices, Home Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009067:Mouthwashes / Q000627:therapeutic use; D009749:Nutrition Surveys; D009910:Oral Hygiene / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010518:Periodontitis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D015995:Prevalence; D056910:Republic of Korea / Q000453:epidemiology; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology; D014099:Toothbrushing / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D055815:Young Adult
D009067:Mouthwashes
Blood pressure; epidemiology; hypertension; oral hygiene; periodontitis; prevalence