The Association between dental caries based on DMFT index and cardiovascular diseases (CVD) in the Azar cohort population

Abstract

Introduction: Considering the high prevalence of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and the possible side-effects of medications used in these diseases, it is necessary to pay attention to the general and oral health of these people to improve the quality of life of this group of patients. The present study aimed to determine the association between cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and dental caries based on the DMFT index in the Azar cohort population. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on data obtained from the enrollment phase of the Azar Cohort Study. Data from 266 people with cardiovascular disease -without complete dentures- along with a control group of 693 people who were matched in terms of gender and age, were included in this study. Dental caries data and data related to cardiovascular disease, demographic and socio-economic characteristics, personal behaviors (teeth brushing frequency, smoking and alcohol consumption) and BMI were extracted from the Azar Cohort databank. A generalized linear models assuming negative binomial distribution with a log-link function was used for analytical statistics considering the effect of possible confounding variables. Results: Out of 959 participants, 57.04% were men and 42.96% were women. Most of the participants were in the age group of 45 to 65 years. The average DMFT index in the whole sample was 17.17±7/24, which was 18.27±7.37 for people with cardiovascular diseases and 16.75±7.14 for the control group. Among the people suffering from cardiovascular diseases, 20% did not take any medicine, and in 8% of the people, the medicine used had no effect on saliva secretion. In 12% of the cases drug use was associated with a severe decrease in saliva secretion and in most of the participants (58%) the use of drugs was associated with a low decrease in saliva secretion. In the present study, no significant relationship between cardiovascular disease and tooth decay was observed. In univariate regression analysis, the variables of gender, age, education, socio-economic status, brushing teeth and smoking had a significant relationship with the DMFT index. After performing multiple analysis, the variables of age at the time of interview, brushing teeth and smoking still had a statistically significant relationship with the DMFT index. In the group with cardiovascular diseases, the variables of gender, age at the time of interview, education, brushing teeth and smoking had a significant relationship with the mean DMFT. Conclusion: Despite the fact that no significant relationship between cardiovascular disease and caries was observed in this study, the significant relationship between the variables of age, toothbrushing and smoking with a high score of the DMFT index indicates the need for policies to control behavioral risk factors and prevention through different methods, including emphesizing on the common risk factor and modifying the lifestyle of adults by providing relevant education.