United States: Diabetes of this kind poses a higher risk of gum disease as the chronic illness affects the small blood vessels, a new study has shown.
Other complications arising from small blood vessel damage and common to diabetics include, diabetic retinopathy and neuropathies and the researchers reveal that diabetics with these diseases are also susceptible to gum diseases.
Diabetic retinopathy, a retinal disease, affected patients and gave them 21 percent chances of moderate or severe gum disease, the study found out. Also, if they had a disease known as diabetic neuropathy, which affects the nerves, they had 36% increased probability of having severe gum disease.
As reported by upi.com, Among those patients who had both the retinal changes and the nerve changes, their gums were more inflamed and they had moderate to severe inflammation which was 51 percent more in comparison with the patients without these complications. Left untreated, gum diseases can worsen the bone and soft tissues that support teeth and possibly cause tooth loss, the researchers noted.
‘This tooth loss may substantially affect such basic functions that include chewing and speaking different words and may as well affect peoples self esteem’ said the main author of the study Dr. Fernando Valentim Bitencourt, a Dentist, at University of Aarhus in Denmark,
Hence, periodontitis [gum disease] may seriously impair the human being’s quality of life as it may affect eating, speaking and interpersonal interactions problems, Dr. Mankodi further said. Knowing the people at an increased risk for such consequences as these – those with diabetes complications – remains paramount to early intervention and prevention. “In the study, the researchers examined data from 15,961 people with Type 2 diabetes recruited in a Danish cohort study.
They said that the study’s findings established definitive connections between small blood vessel damage – an indicator of early diabetes – and moderate or severe periodontitis.
”When diabetes is not well managed it becomes possible to have high blood sugar level which causes an inflammation which in the long run may affect the eyes resulting in retinopathy, the nerves in feet leading to neuropathy or the gums that may lead to severe periodontitis,” explained Bitencourt.