Association between obesity and its determinants with chronic periodontitis: A cross-sectional study

Various systemic disorders such as cardiovascular, diabetes, and osteoporosis are linked to periodontitis. Obesity is one such epidemic, and although many studies have addressed its relationship with periodontitis, the mechanism still remains unclear.

This study aims to assess the association between obesity and its determinants with clinical periodontal parameters in adult patients visiting a dental college in Haryana.

This cross-sectional study was performed in 317 patients visiting a dental college in Gurugram. Obesity parameters such as body mass index (BMI), body fat percentage (BF%), waist circumference (WC), and waist-hip ratio (WHR) were assessed using body fat analyzer (Omron HBF 701). Depending on their BMI, individuals were stratified as overweight (OW), Class 1, Class 2, and Class 3 obese. Periodontal status was assessed by plaque index, gingival index, probing pocket depth (PPD), and clinical attachment level. These periodontal parameters were correlated with BMI, BF%, WC, and WHR. Statistical analysis was done, and P ≤ 0.05 was considered as statistically significant.

The prevalence of periodontitis in OW, Class 1, Class 2, and Class 3 obese was 16.4%, 79.2%, 2.8%, and 1.6%, respectively. PPD was significantly associated with obesity determinants, especially among Class 2 and Class 3 obese individuals. Similarly, BF% was associated with all the periodontal parameters.

Within the restrictions of the study, it can be concluded that obesity and chronic periodontitis are interlinked.