An interesting link between periodontal disease and rheumatoid arthritis has been recently published in the International Journal of General Medicine.
Researcher Mesut Ogrendik found a statistically significant association between types of bacteria found in patients with periodontal disease and bacteria found in the fluids of joints in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
Stopping short of stating that periodontal disease causes RA, the study states that DNA evidence shows that periodontal "bugs" could be implicated in the development of RA. He states,"In other words, it does not mean that the individuals with RA should have periodontitis also. Therefore, the above results indicate that periodontopathic bacteria are responsible for the etiopathogenesis of RA in a genetically susceptible host".
The signicance of this finding is that it may give caregivers a better vision on how to treat this disease.
It might also give new importance to regular dental care.
Contact us if you have questions.
Int J Gen Med. 2013; 6: 383–386.
Published online 2013 May 24. doi: 10.2147/IJGM.S45929
Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease caused by periodontal pathogens
A statistically significant association between periodontal disease (PD) and systemic diseases has been identified. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA), which is a chronic inflammatory joint disease, exhibits similar characteristics and pathogenesis to PD. The association between RA and PD has been investigated, and numerous publications on this subject exist. Approximately 20 bacterial species have been identified as periodontal pathogens, and these organisms are linked to various types of PD. The most analyzed species of periodontopathic bacteria are Porphyromonas gingivalis, Prevotella intermedia, Tannerella forsythia, and Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans. Antibodies and DNA from these oral pathogens have been isolated from the sera and synovial fluids of RA patients. This rapid communication describes the role of periodontal pathogens in the etiopathogenesis of RA.
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