Prevalence of gingivitis and periodontitis in hypertensive patients.

Introduction: Hypertension is another name for high blood pressure. It can lead to severe health complications and increases the risk of coronary artery disease, stroke, heart failure, etc. The other dental-related problems in hypertension are gingivitis and periodontitis. Nowadays, periodontal disease can be also considered as another cardiovascular risk factor. In hypertension, alteration in microcirculation can cause ischemia in periodontium which favors periodontal disease. Experts believe that inflammation from gum disease may trigger or worsen inflammation in other parts of the body, including blood vessels and arteries. Materials and Methods: The study was conducted among dental patients with hypertension visiting Saveetha Dental College. Fifty hypertensive patients are chosen based on their medical records. Then, the scorings are given according to the severity of disease using the gingival bleeding index (bleeding on probing) and Russell's periodontal index. The demographic data were collected. From the hypertensive patients, their medications, dosage, and period of medications data were also collected. Results and Discussion: The study reveals that 66% of hypertensive patients have periodontitis and 34% of them have gingivitis. The molars are the severely affected tooth and the severity of periodontitis is measured by Russell's periodontal index. Conclusion: Hence, we can conclude that hypertensive patients are more susceptible to periodontitis than gingivitis from this study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]