Abstract
BackgroundDepending on risk factors, cumulative risk of developing more dental caries by age has been reported. However, the association between dental caries and asthma is less studied among adults. The aims of this study were to evaluate the severity of untreated carious lesions in a population of asthmatic adults and to evaluate the mediation of socio-economic and oral health behaviour variables.MethodsThe study involved participants with diagnosed asthma (N = 100) and control (N = 100) subjects attending a tertiary hospital. Groups were matched by age and gender. Asthma was the exposure of interest. The outcome measure was the rate of carious lesions. Recorded variables included demographics, socio-economic status, tooth brushing habits and oral health status using WHO criteria. Poisson regression analysis examined the association between asthma and untreated dental caries.ResultsThe adjusted model, after the inclusion of individuals’ behaviours regarding oral health, social determinants and asthma, revealed a significant association between the number of untreated carious lesions and asthma (PR = 1.23; 95% CI 1.23–1.58; p < 0.001).ConclusionPatients with asthma showed a greater number of untreated carious lesions. Looking forward, better understanding of the association between asthma and oral health may require exploiting the interactions of behavioural, social determinant and biological factors.
Highlights
Depending on risk factors, cumulative risk of developing more dental caries by age has been reported
Oral corticosteroid (OCS) combined with inhaled salbutamol and inhaled corticosteroids were used by 43% of asthmatics
Univariate regression analysis showed that occupational status, low and medium education level, low and medium income, emergency dental attendance, never and 1 to 2 per-day frequency of tooth brushing, fair and poor plaque index, moderate and severe gingival inflammation, and asthma status were all identified as risk factors associated with a higher rate of dental caries
Summary
Cumulative risk of developing more dental caries by age has been reported. The association between dental caries and asthma is less studied among adults. Asthma is a common chronic condition that was still rising in prevalence in many countries during the last decades of the twentieth century but has stabilized in others [1, 2]. Dental caries is a common public health condition prevalent among high-risk individuals [3]. These two conditions result in both a burden on patient quality of life as well as tremendous socio-economic impact [4, 5]. Over decades many papers have studied the association between asthma and oral health. The pattern of association of asthma and dental caries has been more frequently studied among children
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