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Updated: Dec 13, 2025

Oral Health Assessment by Lay Personnel for Older Adults
Published on: February 2, 2020
Is there an association between oral health and severity of COVID-19 complications?
Nathalie Botros1, Parvati Iyer2, David M Ojcius3
1University of the Pacific, Arthur Dugoni School of Dentistry, San Francisco, CA, USA.
Abstract:
Most patients with severe complications from COVID-19 have underlying conditions such as obesity, diabetes, and hypertension. In parallel, there is growing evidence for a link between periodontitis and non-oral systemic diseases. The oral cavity is also a reservoir for respiratory pathogens, and patients with periodontal disease are more likely to develop hospital-acquired pneumonia than healthy individuals. We therefore hypothesize that improving oral health could decrease the severity of COVID-19 symptoms and reduce the associated morbidity.
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