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Diabetes and Periodontitis: A Two Way Relationship

Piero Policicchio

Periodontitis is a destructive inflammatory disease of the supporting tissues of the teeth and is caused by specific microorganisms or group of specific microorganisms resulting in progressive destruction of periodontal ligament and alveolar bone with periodontal pocket formation, gingival recession or both. The link between periodontal disease and systemic diseases has been progressively recognized over the past two decades. Currently there is a large amount of data in epidemiological, clinical and laboratory studies that strongly correlate the role of periodontal pathogens on systemic organs by producing pro-inflammatory cytokines, chemokines and inflammatory mediators. Although the relationship between periodontal disease, inflammation and overall health has been suspected, numerous studies are providing more comprehensive evidence for this link. In this context, diabetes predisposes oral tissues to greater periodontal destruction but several studies have now identified that periodontal disease leads to poor glycemic control. It was hence predicted that there exists a two-way relationship between periodontal disease and diabetes mellitus. The regular use of Dental Air Force home dental cleaning system as an oral hygiene device is optimal for suppressing both periodontal infection and associated systemic diseases (Diabetes) as compared to conventional tooth brushing.