Relationship between C-reactive protein level and periodontitis and systemic diseases

Area of Science:

• Oral Health Research
• Systemic Disease Epidemiology
• Biomarker Analysis

Background:

• Periodontitis is linked to systemic disease risk, but the influence of C-reactive protein (CRP) levels remains unclear.
• Investigating the association between periodontitis, systemic diseases, and high-sensitivity CRP (hs-CRP) is essential for public health.
• Understanding these relationships can inform preventative strategies for chronic conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the association between periodontitis and systemic diseases based on hs-CRP levels.
• To identify specific systemic disease risks in periodontitis patients stratified by hs-CRP.
• To highlight the importance of oral health in the context of systemic inflammation.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2016-2018) with 16,489 participants.
• Classified subjects into hs-CRP low-risk and high-risk groups, employing propensity score matching (PSM) for 5,316 subjects.
• Employed logistic regression analyses to assess associations between hs-CRP, periodontitis, and systemic diseases.

Main Results:

• Periodontitis was significantly associated with increased prevalence of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and stroke across hs-CRP groups.
• In the high hs-CRP group, periodontitis elevated the risk of hypertension by 2.1 times and diabetes mellitus by 2.4 times.
• These findings underscore the heightened systemic disease risk in periodontitis patients with elevated inflammation markers.

Conclusions:

• Periodontitis presence significantly elevates systemic disease prevalence, particularly in individuals with higher hs-CRP levels.
• This highlights the critical role of maintaining oral health in mitigating the risk of developing systemic conditions.
• Targeted interventions for periodontitis may reduce the burden of associated systemic diseases.