Nonsurgical Periodontal Therapy decreases the Severity of Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Case-control Study.

Introduction: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and periodontitis are common chronic inflammatory conditions. Several studies suggested a relationship between RA and periodontitis. Recent studies have shown a beneficial effect of periodontal treatment on the severity of active RA. So the aim of this study was to examine the effect of nonsurgical periodontal therapy on the clinical parameters of RA.

Materials And Methods: A total of 60 subjects with moderate-to-severe chronic generalized periodontitis and active RA in the age range 18 to 65 were selected for the study. They were divided into two groups. Group A (control group) consisted of 30 subjects with chronic generalized periodontitis and RA, and group B of 30 subjects with chronic generalized peri-odontitis and RA and they received nonsurgical periodontal therapy (scaling, root planning, and oral hygiene instructions). Evaluation of clinical observations of Simplified Oral Hygiene Index (OHI-S), gingival index (GI), bleeding on probing (BOP), probing pocket depth (PPD), clinical attachment level (CAL), number of swollen joints (SJ), number of tender joints (TJ), values of erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), visual analogue scale (VAS) for patient's global assessment, 3 months disease activity score (DAS) index, and C-reactive protein (CRP) was done at baseline and 3 months. Statistical evaluation of clinical observations was carried out.

Results: Group B subjects who received nonsurgical periodon-tal therapy showed statistically significant improvement in all periodontal and RA parameters at 3 months, compared with group A who did not receive periodontal therapy.

Conclusion: It can be concluded from the result that nonsurgical periodontal therapy may contribute to reduction in severity and symptoms of RA.

Clinical Significance: Rheumatoid arthritis patients should be evaluated for periodontitis and treated for the same in order to reduce its severity level.