Association between serum albumin and periodontal disease in community-dwelling elderly

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between periodontal disease and general health status in community-dwelling elderly using serum albumin concentration as a criterion index of the severity of an underlying disease and nutrition status.

Serum albumin level was detected by the bromcresol green albumin (BCG) method and the data for serum albumin were available in 368 subjects aged 75 years. Pressure-sensitive probes were used to measure loss of attachment (LA) on six sites of all teeth present. Information relevant to gender and smoking habit was obtained by means of a personal interview, while body mass index (BMI) and biochemical serum markers were investigated.

Serum albumin concentration ranged from 3.2 to 4.8 g/dl with a mean of 4.1+/-0.2. More than 70% of subjects had at least one site with LA 6+ mm, while 91 exhibited 10% or more sites with LA 6+ mm. Using a multiple regression analysis, we found that sites of LA 6+ mm had a significant effect on serum albumin level (correlation coefficient=-0.14; p<0.05), which was independent of the other covariates.

The findings of the present study indicated that there might be an inverse relationship between periodontal disease and serum albumin concentration in these elderly subjects.