Periodontal Status of Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus and Healthy Pregnant Women: A Case-Control Pilot Study

This cross-sectional 'case-control' pilot study aimed to compare the size of periodontal wounds, periodontal status and total inflammatory burden between pregnant women with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) and non-diabetic pregnant women.

Fifteen T1DM pregnant women and 15 healthy pregnant women were included. Clinical parameters (probing pocket depths (PPD), plaque index (PI), bleeding on probing (BOP)), periodontal pathogenic bacteria, glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c), high-sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNFα), nitrous oxides (NOx) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels were evaluated. Total inflammatory burden and surface area of periodontal wounds (deep (DBPW) and total bleeding periodontal wounds (TBPW)) were calculated.

Pregnant women with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) exhibited significantly larger deep bleeding periodontal wounds (DBPW: 5.50 ± 4.43 cm² vs. 3.02 ± 1.91 cm²) and total bleeding periodontal wounds (TBPW: 6.31 ± 4.32 cm² vs. 3.88 ± 1.75 cm²) compared to healthy pregnant women. The T1DM group also had higher plaque index (PI) (26.9 vs. 13.5), more bleeding sites on probing (BOP) (29.8 vs. 19.9) and higher glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c) levels (5.8 vs. 5.1). In the test group, age and duration of T1DM were positively associated with periodontal wound size and total inflammatory burden, with the duration of T1DM also linked to increased BOP.

Pregnant women with T1DM are prone to larger periodontal wounds and greater total periodontal inflammatory burden as compared to non-diabetic pregnant women. Close monitoring and preventive measures are crucial to prevent complications during pregnancy and delivery.