QU new research urges extra care for patients with (periodontitis)

The research team spearheaded by Dr. Nadia Maarouf, Associate consultant from Hamad Dental Center, and leaded by Dr. Faleh Tamimi, Professor at Qatar University, speculated that this strong association between COVID-19 and oral health could be caused by the fact that periodontitis causes a chronic inflammation that makes patients more susceptible to the severe and dangerous inflammation caused by COVID-19.
The researchers investigated the records of 568 patients that suffered from COVID-19 , and they found that a significant portion of the patients that suffered severe covid-19 complications and even death, had advanced periodontitis, a type of chronic inflammation of the gums. After adjusting for several factors such as patient's age, gender and chronic diseases, the link between periodontitis and COVID complications was statistically significant, and it revealed that patients with periodontitis were at least 3 times more likely to experience COVID 19 complications regardless of age, gender and other patients’ conditions
Periodontitis is mostly caused by poor oral hygiene and lack of maintenance of the dental condition, thus the findings of the study highlight the importance of maintaining a good dental care, and the regular teeth and gum check-ups, Dentists might play an important role in prevention of the advancement of Gum Diseases.