A study proves oral health improves diabetes

A clinical study conducted by researchers of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences of the UB shows that control of type 2 diabetes improves when the patient attends to dental hygiene.

The study, published in the Journal of Clinical Periodontology, is led by Miquel Viñas, professor of Microbiology, and José López López, lecturer of Medicine at UB.

Type 2 diabetes often goes with periodontal pathologies. "In this new study, we saw that there is not only a relation between them going from diabetes to periodontal diseases, but the other way round, from the periodontal disease to diabetes," says Miquel Viñas.

"The main conclusion of the study is that the non-surgical treatment of periodontitis improves the glycaemic status and levels of glycated haemoglobin, and therefore proves the great importance of oral health in these patients," adds José López López.

The study was carried out with 90 patients with type 2 diabetes who received oral treatment for six months. During this period, they underwent examination of glycated haemoglobin, as well as the presence of oral bacteria populations that cause periodontitis, apart from control of other clinical parameters.