Relationship between renal dialysis, periodontal condition and dental caries

Previous studies on the severity of periodontal diseases and dental caries in renal dialysis patients reported conflicting results. The aim of present study was to evaluate the effect of renal dialysis on DMFT and periodontal status in patients atending to three reftrrtl hospitals located in Tehran, Iran. A total of 120 volunteer subjects comprising of 60 dialysis patients, and 60 healthy controls participated in this study. The subjects in both groups were matched according to their age, sex and plaque index. After obtaining the written consent forms, the demographic and clinical examination was conducted in order to collect information on their DMFT and PDI indices. The data was analyzed by using student t-test. The DMFT was not statistically different in two groups (P>0.05). The attachment loss was about 68.3% in dialysis patients, while this condition was present in 18.3% of healthy control individualf. Gingivitis was noticed in 31.7% of dialysis patients, although it was present in 81.7% of control subjects. The group difference was highly significant for this condition. (P<0.0001) The observed higher rate of periodontal diseases in dialysis patients, warrant for higher levels of intervention in this group of special patients. Therefore it can be suggested that regular dental examination should be added to their treatment protocol.