Beyond the Mouth: The Impact of Periodontal Disease on Dementia Publisher Pubmed



Banakar M^{1, 2} ; Sadabadi Y² ; Mehran M² ; Abbasi F³
Source: Evidence-Based Dentistry Published:2023

Abstract

Data sources: The authors searched Medline via PubMed, Scopus, CINAHL, Web of Science, and PsycINFO for relevant studies published until April 2022. Study selection: Longitudinal studies that assessed periodontal health as the exposure and cognitive decline and/or dementia as the outcome were included. Case reports, reviews, cross-sectional studies, and animal studies were excluded. Data extraction and synthesis: Two authors independently reviewed studies for inclusion, extracted data, and assessed study quality. Meta-analysis was conducted to generate pooled odds ratios (ORs) for cognitive decline and hazard ratios (HRs) for dementia. Sources of heterogeneity were explored through subgroup analyses. Results: A total of 24 studies were included for cognitive decline and 23 for dementia. Poor periodontal health was associated with increased odds of cognitive decline (OR = 1.23; 95% CI: 1.05–1.44) and dementia (HR = 1.21; 95% CI: 1.07–1.38). Tooth loss also appeared to increase the risk independently. However, significant heterogeneity existed between studies. Conclusions: Poor periodontal health may increase the risk of cognitive decline and dementia, but the quality of evidence was low. Further high-quality, longitudinal studies with standardized assessments are needed to establish causality. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to British Dental Association.