Women’s periodontal and systemic conditions during early/late pregnancy in Shenzhen

Abstract

Objectives: This study investigated the association of periodontal status with systemic conditions in early and late pregnant women. Methods: Totally, 111 pregnant women (aged 20-35 years; 7-13 or 34-36 weeks of gestational age) were recruited at the Shenzhen Maternity & Child Healthcare Hospital (SMCHH) from August 2020 to January 2021. Demographic data, systemic and periodontal conditions were recorded, via medical check-ups and full-mouth periodontal examination. Results: Overall, 61.7% of subjects self-reported bleeding on brushing (BoB). 97.3% (108/111) had over 50% of sites with dental plaque, and 81.1% presented with bleeding on probing at over 10 % of tooth sites. 58.8% and 14.4% of subjects showed increased probing depth of 4-5 mm and ≥ 6mm, respectively. There were 41.4% (46/111) of subjects with non-periodontitis (periodontal health and gingivitis) and 58.6% (65/111) with periodontitis, following the new classification of periodontal diseases (2017). The periodontitis subjects exhibited higher levels of serum albumin than non-periodontitis ones (33.53±4.07 vs. 32.84±3.85 g/L, p<0.05). From aspect of obstetrics, 73 subjects at late (34-36 weeks) gestational age self-reported bleeding on brushing more frequently than those 38 subjects at early (7-13 weeks) gestational age (p<0.05). No other difference existed between the two groups of early and late stages of pregnancy. Multivariate logistic regression analysis on the association of systemic conditions with periodontitis revealed that serum triglyceride level was significantly correlated with periodontal status (OR = 9.57, 95% CI: 1.12-82.20, p<0.05). Conclusions: Within the limits of the study, the current findings demonstrate the needed-to-be-improved periodontal condition of pregnant women, highlighting the great importance to all mothers-to-be for optimal oral/general health and well-being of themselves and newborn babies.