Effect of Periodontal Disease on Diabetic Retinopathy in Type 2 Diabetic Patients: A Cross-Sectional Pilot Study

Both periodontal disease and diabetes are common chronic inflammatory diseases. One of the major problems with type 2 diabetes is that unregulated blood glucose levels damage the vascular endothelium and cause complications. A bidirectional relationship between periodontal disease and diabetic complications has been reported previously. However, whether periodontal disease affects the presence of diabetic complications has not been clarified. Therefore, we examined the effect of the periodontal disease status on diabetic complications in patients with type 2 diabetes. Periodontal doctors examined the periodontal disease status of 104 type 2 diabetic patients who visited a private diabetes medical clinic once a month between 2016 and 2018. The subject's diabetic status was obtained from their medical records. Bayesian network analysis showed that bleeding on probing directly influenced the presence of diabetic retinopathy in type 2 diabetes patients. In addition, bleeding on probing was higher in the diabetic retinopathy group (n = 36) than in the group without diabetic retinopathy (n = 68, p = 0.006, Welch's t-test). Bleeding on probing represents gingival inflammation, which might affect the presence of diabetic retinopathy in type 2 diabetes patients who regularly visit diabetic clinics.