RESEARCH - What has aging to do with periodontal health and disease?

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Int Dent J. 2006 Aug;56(4 Suppl 1):240-9.

What has ageing to do with periodontal health and disease?

Department of Periodontology and Fixed Prosthodontics, School of Dental

Medicine, Berne, Switzerland. rutger.persson@...

Periodontitis is a multi-factorial disease and in most cases also a disease

with a chronic progression. Exposure to factors which contribute to

periodontitis occurs over a long period, so that at the time of diagnosis it

may be difficult to identify and evaluate what co-factors have contributed

to its development. These include exposure to bacteria and viruses,

inflammation, genetic factors, health behaviours and a variety of social

factors, socio-economic status, behavioural and nutritional habits, the

ability to cope with stress and the ability of the immune system to fight

infections. Many patients in their 50s also experience other conditions such

as heart disease, diabetes mellitus, or rheumatoid arthritis and recent

reports on the associations and potential biological mechanisms by which

periodontitis can be linked to other systemic diseases suggest that the

patient with periodontitis is a challenged individual. Neither individuals

nor their oral health care providers are currently prepared for the

challenges in oral health care as the expectation of successful ageing with

remaining and aesthetically functional teeth is increasing. The scientific

evidence is, however, growing, and while the opportunities to prepare for

successful ageing exist they must be included in the educational process of

both current and future oral health care providers and their patients.

PMID: 16972399

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed & cmd=Retrieve & dopt=Abstra\

ctPlus & list_uids=16972399

Not an MD