Oral microbiota in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus

INTRODUCTION: The oral cavity is a unique ecosystem in which the microbiome is formed by the colonization of billions of bacteria, viruses, and fungi. AIM OF THE STUDY: was to assess the quality and quantity of bacterial microbiota of the oral cavity in children with type 1 diabetes in comparison to healthy children. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study group consisted of 50 randomly selected type 1 diabetic children aged 10–18 years divided into 2 groups (25 people each) according to the level of diabetes control: well-controlled group (WC) – HbA(1c) ≤ 7.5%) and poorly-controlled group (PC) – HbA(1c) > 7.5%. The control group (GC) consisted of 25 randomly selected children with no systemic diseases. The material for microbiological tests was collected as two swabs: one from the bottom of the oral cavity and the other one from the posterior part of the dorsum of the tongue). RESULTS: The statistical analysis revealed statistically significant differences in the total number of isolated microorganisms between PC and GC (post hoc test p = 0.003) and WC and GC (post hoc test p < 0.001). There were no statistically significant differences in the number of isolated microorganisms between PC and WC (p = 0.195). CONCLUSIONS: Oral microbiome in type 1 diabetic children is significantly quantitatively different in comparison to healthy children. There are also visible qualitative differences in the profile of oral microbiota in type 1 diabetic children and healthy children.