Low vitamin D status strongly associated with periodontitis in Puerto Rican adults

Abstract

BackgroundPeriodontitis and vitamin D deficiency are both highly prevalent in Puerto Rico. The aim of this pilot study was to evaluate the association between vitamin D levels and periodontal disease in Puerto Rican adults.MethodsA sex-, age-, and BMI-matched case-control, cross-sectional study was conducted on 24 cases of moderate/severe periodontitis and 24 periodontally healthy controls aged 35 to 64 years. Each participant completed a socio-demographic questionnaire, underwent a full-mouth periodontal examination and provided blood sample to measure serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25 (OH) D) levels to assess vitamin D status.ResultsA total of 19 matched case-control pairs (28 females, 10 males) completed the study. Mean serum 25 (OH) D levels were significantly lower in cases (18.5 ± 4.6 ng/ml) than in controls (24.2 ± 7.1 ng/ml; p = 0.006). Lower odds of periodontal disease were observed per unit of 25 (OH) D level (OR 0.885; 95 % CI 0.785, 0.997; p < 0.05).ConclusionsLower serum vitamin D levels are significantly associated with periodontitis in Puerto Rican adults.

Vitamin D levels and risk for periodontal disease: A systematic review

“…The majority of the studies were conducted in the USA, whereas populations from Europe, South and North America and Asia were also assessed. Ten studies evaluated samples from the general population, 3 studies included only older men, 4 studies assessed exclusively post‐menopausal women and 2 included older women . Other studies evaluated patients with specific health conditions (pregnant women, hospital patients, breast cancer survivors, HIV‐infected adults, liver transplant patients) …”

Factors associated with the risk of gingival disease in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

“…High serum levels of 25 (OH) D substrate induce various immune cells to produce 1, 25 (OH)2 D which regulates the immune response at sites of inflammation, and inhibits monocyte production of cytokines such as IL-1β and TNFα which impair wound healing and induce bone resorption [41, 42]. It has been reported patients with periodontitis had significantly lower levels of vitamin D compared to controls [43]. Our data showing that the odds of gingival disease in RA patients decreased with an increase in serum vitamin D levels, are consistent with the previously reported role vitamin D in gingival disease [44].…”

Association Between the Degree of Gingival Inflammation and 25-Hydroxy Vitamin D Status in Postmenopausal Women

“…However, this difference was not statistically significant (Table 3). Vitamin D deficiency plays a role in dental and oral bone pathologies (altered formation, periodontal disease, and jaw osteonecrosis) [13].…”

“…The results are expressed as nanogram per milliliter (range: 7.8-500 ng/mL). For this study, Vitamin D levels were categorized as deficient if the levels were <30 ng/mL and adequate if the levels were ≥30 ng/mL, as per the guidelines of the Institute of Medicine [13][14][15].…”