Relationship between the burden of major periodontal bacteria and serum lipid profile in a cross-sectional Japanese study

Youn-Hee Choi,Miki Ojima,Makoto Watanabe,Takahiro Ono,Shinichi Sekine,Yoshihiro Kokubo,Yoshihiro Miyamoto,Atsuo Amano,Takayuki Kosaka

doi:10.1186/s12903-018-0536-0

Abstract

BackgroundThe association of periodontal bacteria with lipid profile alteration remains largely unknown, although it has been suggested that chronic periodontitis increases the atherosclerotic risk. This cross-sectional study investigated the relationship between the prevalence and total burden of periodontal bacteria and serum lipid profile.MethodsSaliva from enrolled participants was collected to detect 4 major periodontal bacteria (Porphyromonas gingivalis, Treponema denticola, Tannerella forsythia, and Prevotella intermedia) using Polymerase Chain Reaction method. High-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, triglycerides (TG), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol were assessed using blood samples. We compared the averages of each lipid in association with the prevalence of each bacterial species, their burden (low, moderate, and high), and the combination of bacterial burden and periodontal status, defined as periodontitis, using the Community Periodontal Index, after adjustment for other potential confounding factors, by employing general linear models with least square means.ResultsA total of 385 Japanese individuals (176 men, 209 women; mean age 69.2 years) were enrolled. The number of bacterial species and their co-existence with periodontitis were significantly related to a decrease in HDL (p for trend < 0.01) and increase in TG (p for trend = 0.04). The adjusted mean HDL levels (mg/dL) in individuals with low, moderate, and high levels of bacterial species were 66.1, 63.0, and 58.9, respectively, and those in the 6 groups defined by combination of the two factors were 67.9, 64.6, 64.3, 65.4, 61.5, and 54.7, respectively.ConclusionPeriodontal bacterial burden is suggested to be independently involved in lowering serum HDL level. Our findings suggest that bacterial tests in a clinical setting could be a useful approach for predicting the risk of HDL metabolism dysregulation.

Highlights

The association of periodontal bacteria with lipid profile alteration remains largely unknown, it has been suggested that chronic periodontitis increases the atherosclerotic risk
We aimed to investigate the relationship between the prevalence of periodontal bacterial species with the total periodontal bacterial burden and the serum lipid profile, and to assess the combined effects of bacterial factors and the presence of periodontitis on the level of serum lipids
Periodontitis group showed a tendency to possess all of the periodontal bacteria, while P. intermedia was more likely to be harbored by ex-smokers and a higher percentage of older people possessed P. gingivalis

Summary

Introduction

The association of periodontal bacteria with lipid profile alteration remains largely unknown, it has been suggested that chronic periodontitis increases the atherosclerotic risk. This cross-sectional study investigated the relationship between the prevalence and total burden of periodontal bacteria and serum lipid profile. It did not show that those bacterial groups were related to other metabolic syndrome components Another recent study [13] suggested that periodontitis, as determined by pocket depth, clinical insertion level, and bleeding on probing, was associated with distorted serum lipid levels, and noted that the serum levels of P. gingivalis and A. actinomycetemcomitans antibodies may be a risk factor for decrease high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels. We aimed to investigate the relationship between the prevalence of periodontal bacterial species with the total periodontal bacterial burden and the serum lipid profile, and to assess the combined effects of bacterial factors and the presence of periodontitis on the level of serum lipids

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Conclusion