Public Awareness of the Association between Periodontal Disease and Systemic Disease

Periodontal disease is associated with other non-communicable diseases including diabetes mellitus, coronary heart disease and atherosclerosis, hypertension, and respiratory tract infections. This association merits careful study of the general population's awareness level in order to leverage the current state of science to improve general health and quality of life. This study included 502 residents of Saudi Arabia who received computer-assisted interviews to fill up the survey. Results indicated a low level of awareness among the study population regarding the association of periodontal disease to diabetes mellitus, coronary heart disease and atherosclerosis, hypertension, and respiratory tract infections. A higher level of awareness was noticed with individuals with periodontal disease, themselves or a member of their family having a systemic disease, and who have a specialized person or scientific article as their source of information. This observed low level of awareness deserves the attention of public health authorities to prioritize programs that increase the awareness, improve health, and reduce burden of systemic diseases of high prevalence, morbidity, and mortality.