Periapical and Endodontic Status of Type 2 Diabetic Patients in Catalonia, Spain: A Cross-sectional Study

Abstract

Introduction The aim of this study was to investigate radiographically the prevalence of apical periodontitis (AP) and endodontic treatment in a sample of adult type II diabetic patients and control subjects. Methods In a cross-sectional study, the radiographic records of 50 adult patients reporting a history of well-controlled type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) (study group) and 50 age- and sex-matched subjects who reported no history of DM (control group) were examined. Periapical status of all teeth was assessed using the periapical index score. Results The average number of teeth per patient in the diabetic and control groups was 21.9 and 24.6 teeth, respectively ( P = .012). AP in one or more teeth was found in 37 diabetic patients (74%) and in 21 control subjects (42%) (odds ratio = 3.9, P = .002). One or more root-filled teeth were found in 35 (70%) and 25 (50%) of diabetic and control subjects, respectively (odds ratio = 2.3, P = .043). Among diabetic patients with root-filled teeth, 16 (46%) had AP affecting at least one treated tooth. Among controls with root-filled teeth, 6 (24%) had AP affecting at least one treated tooth ( P > .05). Adjusting for teeth number, multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that periapical status (odds ratio = 3.3, P = .0071) and the number of root-filled teeth (odds ratio = 1.7; P = .0035) were significantly associated with diabetic status. Conclusions The results showed that in adult patients, type 2 DM is significantly associated with an increased prevalence of AP and endodontic treatment.