Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2018 Aug 15;6(8):1545-1553.
doi: 10.3889/oamjms.2018.294. eCollection 2018 Aug 20.

The burden of Diabetes, Its Oral Complications and Their Prevention and Management

Muhammad Ashraf Nazir  1 , Lamiah AlGhamdi  2 , Mariam AlKadi  2 , Noura AlBeajan  2 , Latifah AlRashoudi  2 , Mai AlHussan  2
Affiliations
Review

The burden of Diabetes, Its Oral Complications and Their Prevention and Management

Muhammad Ashraf Nazir et al. Open Access Maced J Med Sci. .

Abstract

Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM), chronic disease, is a public health problem that affects 8.5% adult population worldwide. The number of adults with DM has risen sharply from 108 million in 1980 to 422 million in 2014. In 2012, 1.5 million individuals died because of DM and an additional 2.2 million deaths occurred because of high blood glucose level resulting in cardiovascular and other systemic diseases. DM brings huge economic loss to patients, their families, and healthcare systems. Globally, the cost of DM was US$1•31 trillion in 2015.

Aim: This review article utilised the prevalence data of diabetes mellitus from the World Health Organization and International Diabetes Federation to provide a comprehensive picture of the disease in different parts of the world.

Methods: Electronic databases such as Google Scholar, Medline via PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science were used to search the literature. The library resources of Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia were used to retrieve studies on the topics of the present review.

Results: Systemic complications of DM include heart attack, kidney disease, limb loss, blindness, and peripheral nerve damage. More than 90% of diabetic patients were found to have oral manifestations. It is known that DM severely damages oral tissues causing periodontal disease, tooth loss, xerostomia, caries, burning mouth disorder, taste and salivary gland dysfunction, delayed wound healing, lichen planus, geographic tongue, and candidiasis. The evidence is mounting about a strong bidirectional relationship between DM and periodontal disease. Unfortunately, many diabetic patients are unaware of the association between DM and oral health, and only a small percentage of them visit the dentist for routine dental check-ups. Changes in lifestyles (control of blood glucose levels and self-care practices), regular dental check-ups with emphasis on periodontal assessment, and reinforcement of oral health instructions can effectively prevent oral complications of DM. Scaling and root planning are effective in improving glycemic control among diabetic patients.

Conclusion: Dental professionals should be part of the multidisciplinary team that helps individuals with diabetes.

Keywords: Diabetes; Oral complications; Prevention.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Prevalence of diabetes in high-income countries [10] [11]
Figure 2
Figure 2
Prevalence of diabetes in middle-income countries [10] [11]
Figure 3
Figure 3
Prevalence of diabetes among low-income countries [10] [11]
Figure 4
Figure 4
Prevalence of diabetes in the Eastern Mediterranean Region [10]
Figure 5
Figure 5
Oral manifestations among diabetic patients [23] [41]
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. American Diabetes Association. Standards of medical care in diabetes—2011. Diabetes care. 2011;34(Supplement 1):S11–S61. https://doi.org/10.2337/dc11-S011 PMid:21193625 PMCid:PMC3006050. - PMC - PubMed
    1. World Health Organization. Global report on diabetes:World Health Organization. 2016
    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. National diabetes statistics report 2017. Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2017.
    1. Kim DL, Kim SD, Kim SK, Park S, Song KH. Is an oral glucose tolerance test still valid for diagnosing diabetes mellitus? Diabetes & metabolism journal. 2016;40(2):118–28. https://doi.org/10.4093/dmj.2016.40.2.118 PMid:26616592 PMCid:PMC4853219. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Indurkar MS, Maurya AS, Indurkar S. Oral Manifestations of Diabetes. Clinical Diabetes. 2016;34:54–57. https://doi.org/10.2337/diaclin.34.1.54 PMid:26807010 PMCid:PMC4714722. - PMC - PubMed