Routine blood tests given during physician visits can reveal periodontal disease indicators, say researchers in the December issue of the Journal of Periodontology.
Researchers from AichiGakuin University, Aichi, Japan, reported that there was a significant connection between healthy results from a patient’s blood work and good oral health. They reached this conclusion based on an analysis of the oral health and blood tests of 7,452 men and women, testing the blood for 37 common factors, including cholesterol, diabetes and C-reactive protein—a marker associated with inflammatory processes related to heart disease that has been linked with periodontal disease.
In the study, when blood tests revealed generally healthy results, the subject’s oral health generally was good. Meanwhile, blood tests showing positive results for particular markers usually were correlated with evidence of periodontal disease.
Researchers particularly noted a relationship between the presence of C-reactive protein and the incidence of periodontal disease among the female subjects. They also noted a higher prevalence of serious periodontal disease symptoms among the male subjects in general, though they could not find a specific reason for this trend.
"With each study that looks at the association between systemic and periodontal diseases, we learn more about the C-reactive protein correlation," said Dr. Michael P. Rethman, president of the American Academy of Periodontology. "These findings mean that in the future when patients visit their medical doctors for a routine checkup and annual blood work, they may also be referred to a periodontist for a periodontal screening if the blood indicates systemic abnormalities."
