Periodontal health status of patients attending Diabetic Clinic at Kenyatta National Hospital, Nairobi, Kenya.

The periodontal health status of diabetic patients and the association between periodontal disease and treatment mode, age and duration of diabetes were investigated in 86 dentulous men and women aged between 20 years and 69 years. 43 were diabetics regularly controlled at Kenyatta National Hospital Diabetic Clinic and 43 were non-diabetics attending medical outpatient clinic at the same hospital for minor ailments. Diabetic patients were found to have significant severer levels of periodontal disease than the non-diabetics. The difference persisted with increasing age. No correlation was found between treatment mode and duration of diabetes on one hand and the severity of periodontal disease on the other.