The association between periodontal disease and dementia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

The association between periodontal disease and dementia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Author Info

Corresponding Author
Kostas Kapellas
Australian Research Centre for Population Oral Health, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia

A B S T R A C T

Background and Objective: Periodontal disease is a chronic infection and inflammatory condition of the tooth-supporting tissues. Dementia is a degenerative condition of the brain affecting memory and brain function. The objective of this review is to evaluate associations between the two conditions. Methods: Systematic review with meta-analysis of published articles that involved participants aged ≥45 years with either periodontal disease or dementia. Electronic database searches of PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and Scopus were conducted to source articles that met the inclusion criteria. The NewcastleOttawa Scale was used for quality appraisal. Two random effects meta-analyses were conducted to investigate the bi-directional association between periodontitis and dementia. Results: Of 1,670 titles and abstracts found, quality assessment was conducted on 23 articles that met the inclusion criteria. Eight articles presenting findings on the association between dementia and periodontitis, and four studies on the converse association, were subsequently combined into meta-analysis. People with periodontal disease are more likely to suffer from dementia (Odds Ratio=1.17, 95% CI=1.02-1.34, P heterogeneity=0.33, I2 =13%). Conversely, people with dementia are 69% more likely to have periodontal disease (Odds Ratio =1.69, 95% CI=1.23-2.30, P heterogeneity=0.00, I2 =76%). Conclusion: A bi-directional association exists between periodontitis and dementia. With the aging population increasing, degenerative conditions such as dementia and periodontal disease are becoming more common. Family members and healthcare providers need to be aware that the effects of dementia may impede adequate oral hygiene, the cornerstone of prevention of periodontitis, and increase the likelihood of periodontal disease.

Article Info

Article Type
Research Article
Publication history
Received: Thu 28, Feb 2019
Accepted: Sat 16, Mar 2019
Published: Sat 06, Apr 2019
Copyright
© 2023 Kostas Kapellas . This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Hosting by Science Repository.
DOI: 10.31487/j.DOBCR.2019.01.005