Relationship of Clinical and Microbiological Variables in Patients with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus and Periodontitis

BACKGROUND: The aim of the study was to analyze how metabolic control of type 1 diabetes is related to clinical and microbiological periodontal parameters. MATERIAL/METHODS: The study involved 56 subjects aged from 19 to 50 years divided into 2 groups: healthy subjects (the H group), and diabetic (type 1 diabetes) patients with chronic untreated generalized periodontitis (the DM group). The glycosylated hemoglobin value (HbA1c) was determined using the UniCel DxC 800 SYNCHRON System (Beckman Coulter, USA), and the concentration in blood was measured by the turbidimetric immunoinhibition method. A molecular genetic assay (Micro-IDent plus, Germany) was used to detect periodontopathogenic bacteria in plaque samples. Periodontitis was confirmed by clinical and radiological examination. RESULTS: Fusobacterium nucleatum, Capnocytophaga species, and Eikenella corrodens were the most frequently found bacteria in dental plaque samples (77.8%, 66.7%, and 33.4%, respectively), whereas Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans was identified 40.7% less frequently in the DM group than in the H group. The strongest relationship was observed between the presence of 2 periodontal pathogens – F. nucleatum and Capnocytophaga spp. – and poorer metabolic control in type 1 diabetes patients (HbA1c) and all clinical parameters of periodontal pathology. CONCLUSIONS: Periodontal disease was more evident in type 1 diabetic patients, and the prevalence of periodontitis was greatly increased in subjects with poorer metabolic control.