Association between diabetes-related clinical indicators and oral health behavior among patients with type 2 diabetes

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between diabetes-related indicators and oral health behavior among patients with type 2 diabetes. Methods: Seventy-four outpatients were included. We administered a questionnaire and divided the patients into two groups according to oral health behavior and eating habits. We then compared diabetes-related clinical records between the groups and performed logistic regression analysis. Results: Participants who brushed their teeth before bedtime every night had lower BMIs than those who did not. Participants who reported eating slowly and chewing well every day had significantly lower HbA1c than their counterparts. Participants who reported gum bleeding had significantly higher LDL-cholesterol than their counterparts. Binominal logistic regression analysis revealed that BMI < 25 was associated with not brushing teeth before bedtime every night, HbA1c < 7.5 with not eating slowly or chewing well every day, and LDL-cholesterol < 120 with gum bleeding (odds ratio: 0.140, 95% confidence interval: 0.036–0.540; OR: 0.085, 95% CI: 0.010–0.736, OR: 0.275, 95% CI: 0.077–0.979, respectively). Conclusions: Our findings suggest that toothbrushing before bedtime every night is associated with reduced risk of obesity and that eating slowly and chewing well are advantageous for glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes.