Tooth decay and bleeding gums associated with low vitamin D in postmenopausal women – Dec 2012

Plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D Concentrations and Periodontal Disease in Postmenopausal Women.

J Periodontol. 2012 Dec 21.
Millen AE, Hovey KM, Lamonte MJ, Swanson M, Andrews CA, Kluczynski MA, Genco RJ, Wactawski-Wende J.
Departments of Social and Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health and Health Professions, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Buffalo, NY.

Background: Vitamin D has anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties that, together with its influence on bone health, may confer periodontal benefit.

Methods: We investigated cross-sectional associations (1997-2000) between plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations [25(OH)D] and periodontal measure among 920 postmenopausal women. Chronic measures of disease were defined based on: 1) alveolar crestal height (ACH) measures from intraoral radiographs and tooth loss, and the 2) Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)/American Academy of Periodontology (AAP) criteria using measures of clinical attachment level (CAL) and probing pocket depth (PD). Acute oral inflammation was assessed by the % of gingival sites that bled upon assessment with a probe. Logistic regression was used to estimate the odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for periodontal disease among participants with adequate ([25(OH)D]≥50 nmol/L) compared to deficient/inadequate ([25(OH)D]<50 nmol/L) vitamin D status adjusted for age, dental visit frequency, and body mass index.

Results: No association was observed between vitamin D status and periodontal disease defined by ACH and tooth loss (adjusted OR=0.96, 95% CI: 0.68-1.35).

In contrast, women with adequate compared to deficient/inadequate vitamin D status had a

• 33% lower odds (95% CI: 5%-53%) of periodontal disease defined using the CDC/AAP definition and a
• 42% lower odds (95% CI: 21%-58%) of having ≥50% of gingival sites that bled.

Conclusion: Vitamin D status was inversely associated with gingival bleeding, an acute measure of oral health and inflammation and inversely associated with clinical categories of chronic periodontal disease that incorporated PD, an indicator of oral inflammation.
However, vitamin D was not associated with chronic periodontal disease based on measures of ACH in combination with tooth loss.

PMID: 23259413

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See also VitaminDWiki

• Dental caries cut in half by vitamin D, review of 24 old clinical trials – Nov 2012
• All items in category Dental and Vitamin D 101 items