Sex-specific associations between oral health and cardiovascular risk profile in the population-based Tromsø Study 7

Abstract

Introduction: cardiovascular disease (CVD) is one of the major causes of death in the world. Many studies have linked CVD with periodontitis which is oral inflammatory disease. But those studies didn´t take into consideration the overall oral health as one confounder that can be linked to CVD, not just periodontitis.

Objective: the main aim was to study the sex-specific association between variables that describe oral health and CVD risk profile.

Materials and methods: cross-sectional study design has been performed using data from Tromsø study 7. In Tromsø study 7, a random sample was selected to undergo a dental examination before the study begins. This randomized sample had been used after excluding cases with missing data to do a complete analysis. The final sample comprised 3374 subjects: 1736 women and 1638 men. Sex-specific association between oral health describing variables (decayed missed filled teeth (DMFT), number of teeth and number of decayed teeth) and CVD risk profile (total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, diabetes, obesity and hypertension) was assessed in univariable and multivariable models. Age, Smoking and number of dentist visits were used as possible confounders. Furthermore, the association between oral health describing variables and Framingham risk score (FRS) which describes 10 years risk of developing CVD has been assessed in univariable and multivariable models both with linear and binary logistic statistical models. Results: DMFT which is unfavourable for oral health when increased is associated with unfavourable total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and obesity in women. And unfavourable HDL and obesity in men. Furthermore, DMFT had an unfavourable association with FRS only in men. Teeth number which is favourable for oral health when increased is associated with favourable obesity and hypertension for women and favourable HDL and obesity in men. But in contrast, it has an unfavourable association with total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol in both men and women. Furthermore, teeth number was associated with favourable FRS in both men and women.

Conclusion: favourable oral health is generally associated with the favourable CVD risk profile. oral health is associated with different CVD risk profile variables with different grades in men and women. Furthermore, compromised oral health is associated with increased 10 years risk of CVD incidence in both men and women but with different grades. Therefore, any future studies or preventive strategies regarding this topic should be also sex-specific.