Relationship between Periodontal disease and Asthma among overweight/obese adults

Aim: To assess the relationship between oral health and asthma. Methods: Data from 1,315 overweight or obese individuals, aged 40-65 years was used. Asthma was self-reported, while periodontitis, bleeding on probing (BOP), and plaque index were determined by clinical examinations. Results: Using logistic regression adjusting for gender, smoking status, age, body mass index, family history of asthma, and income level, revealed that the odds ratio (OR) of asthma for a participant with severe periodontitis was 0.44 (95% confidence interval: 0.27, 0.70) that of a participant with none/mild periodontitis . On the other hand, proportion of BOP sites, and plaque index were not statistically significant. For a participant with severe periodontitis, the OR of taking asthma medication was 0.20 (95% confidence interval: 0.09, 0.43) that of a participant with none/mild periodontitis. Moreover, proportion of BOP sites was statistically associated to use of asthma medication while plaque index still remained non-significant. Conclusion: Participants with severe periodontitis were less likely to have asthma. Stronger evidence of an inverse association was found when using asthma medication as outcome. Keywords: asthma; periodontal disease; asthma medication; periodontitis; hygiene hypothesis