ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Studies have shown that diabetes increases the prevalence and severity of periodontitis. Furthermore, among patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (DM), poorer glycemic control was found to be associated with poorer periodontal health.OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of periodontitis and its association with glycemic control among Filipino patients with Type 2 DM.DESIGN: Cross-sectional studyMATERIALS AND METHODS: Diagnosed Type 2 DM patients 35 years and above were recruited from the out-patient clinics of St. Luke's Medical Center from June-October 2009. Periodontitis was evidenced by the presence of ?3mm probing depth and ?3mm periodontal attachment loss at the same site. Periodontitis severity was classified based on probing depth and furcation involvement. Glycemic control was assessed by laboratory assay for HbA1c grouped into RESULTS: A total of 192 subjects were analyzed. Prevalence of periodontitis among the Type 2 DM population studied was 68.23%. In this study, we found out that for those whose length of time since last dental check-up was >1 year, the odds of having periodontitis is 3.8 times higher (95% CI 1.45-9.76, p-value 0.007) among subjects with HbA1c ?7% compared to those with HbA1c CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that periodontitis is prevalent among the Filipino Type 2 DM population studied. In this study, it is the interaction of both HbA1c ?7% and length of time since last dental check-up >1 year that resulted in a statistically significant association with periodontitis.