Association between obstructive sleep apnea and comorbidities with periodontal disease in adults

Several studies have reported an association between periodontal disease and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). However, heterogeneity of results suggests that there is insufficient evidence to support this association.

The objective of this study was to identify the association between periodontal disease and OSA in adults with different comorbidities.

One hundred and ninety-nine individuals (107 women and 92 men) underwent polysomnography with a mean age of 49.9 years were recruited.

The presence of OSA, comorbidities, and periodontal disease was evaluated in each individual. Student's t-tests or Chi-square and ANOVA tests were used to determine the differences between groups.

The prevalence of periodontal disease was 62.3% and 34.1% for gingivitis. The results showed no statistically significant association between all groups of patients with OSA and non-OSA patients for gingivitis (P = 0.27) and for periodontitis (P = 0.312). However, statistically significant association was shown between periodontitis and mild OSA compared with the periodontitis and non-OSA referent (P = 0.041; odds ratio: 1.37 and 95% confidence interval 1.11-2.68). The analysis between OSA and comorbidities showed a statistically significant difference for patients with OSA and hypertension (P < 0.001) and for patients with OSA and hypertensive cardiomyopathy (P < 0.001) compared with healthy individuals. Periodontitis was more likely in men with severe OSA and with any of two comorbidities such as hypertension or hypertensive cardiomyopathy. Women with hypertension or hypertensive cardiomyopathy were more likely to have mild OSA, and these associations were statistically significant (P < 0.05).

This study identified association between periodontitis and mild OSA and this association was more frequent in women with hypertension or hypertensive cardiomyopathy. Periodontitis was associated with severe OSA in men who showed any of two comorbidities such as hypertension or hypertensive cardiomyopathy.