Association between periodontal disease and endothelial dysfunction in smoking patients

Over the past two decades, there has been increasing interest in the impact of oral health on cardiovascular disease, particularly regarding the effects of chronic infections such as periodontitis on the endothelium. The aim of this study was to evaluate in healthy smokers whether there are any significant differences in the frequency of endothelial dysfunction between subjects with chronic moderate to severe periodontal disease and periodontally healthy subjects. An observational cross-sectional study was conducted. The target population was adults older than 40 years of age. Blood tests were performed to determine values of CBC, glycaemia, total cholesterol, HDL-C, and LDLC. Periodontal examinations and probing were conducted with a Florida Probe®, and standardized procedures were used to measure flow-mediated dilation. Out of 150 subjects [69 male (46%) and 81 female (54%)], 75 (50%) had chronic periodontitis. The mean value for baseline flow-mediated dilation was 4.04% and the mean value for final flow-mediated dilation was 4.66%, with a 0.62% mean difference showing a statistically significant increase (p<0.001).This study found no significant difference in the flow-mediated dilation values between periodontally healthy subjects and those with periodontitis, in contrast to the literature, which suggests a negative impact of periodontal disease on endothelial function.