Mystery of perio-arthritis link

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RA sufferers can struggle to maintain good oral hygiene.

People with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are nearly eight times more likely to suffer from periodontal disease compared to healthy controls, reports a new study.

For some patients, adverse RA symptoms may affect manual dexterity, which can make a daily routine quite difficult.

One area that may be affected is oral hygiene, which can ultimately lead to poor oral health and periodontal disease.

However, these research findings indicate that poor oral hygiene alone did not account for the association between rheumatoid arthritis and gum disease, suggesting that other factors may play a role as well.

A team of researchers in Berlin, Germany, examined 57 RA patients and 52 healthy controls. Each participant underwent a comprehensive oral examination including an assessment of plaque accumulation and gingival inflammation.

The results indicated that RA patients were nearly eight times more likely to have periodontal disease compared to the control subjects.

Researchers then examined the extent to which poor oral hygiene was connected to the increased occurrence of gum disease in RA patients.

The data revealed that while oral hygiene was clearly a factor, it did not fully explain the association between the two diseases, suggesting that there may be other parameters responsible for the increased prevalence of gum disease in RA sufferers.

The report was published in the June issue of the Journal of Periodontology.

"With results suggesting that rheumatoid arthritis is associated with periodontal disease, it is easy to assume this is due to the debilitating nature of the disease," said journal editor Dr Kenneth Kornman. "However, both rheumatoid arthritis and gum disease are systemic inflammatory disorders which may explain the connection between the two.

"Inflammation is already thought to link periodontal disease with other conditions such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes. We look forward to any future research that may reveal the biological mechanisms that link these two important diseases."

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