Comparative Assessment of P. gingivalis Level in Periodontit is Patients with and without Diabetes Mellitus- A PCR based Study

Introduction: Periodontal diseases if left untreated can lead to tooth loss with the main cause being bacterial plaque. Among the subgingival plaque bacterial species, Porphyromonasgingivalis has been implicated as a major etiological agent causing tooth loss. Diabetic patients are at high risk for periodontal disease. Our aim was to compare the involvement of P. gingivalis in diabetes mellitus (DM) patients associated with periodontitis and to compare them with periodontitis patients having no other systemic pathologies.

Materials and Methods: Subgingival plaque samples from a total of 8 patients were collected. DNA was isolated from the collected samples and was quantified using RT-PCR for standardizing the polymerase chain reaction. Paired t test was performed using the statistical software Graphpad prism (Version 7.0).

Results: There was a statistically significant level of P. gingivalis seen in periodontitis patients having DM (p=0.0053), whereas the least score was seen in periodontitis patients without DM.

Conclusion: Poor glycemic control, as indicated by HbA1c≥7%, is associated with increased levels and frequencies of periodontal pathogens in the subgingival biofilm of subjects with DM.