Immune Dysfunction Linking Periodontitis And Diabetes

Periodontitis is a polymicrobial initiated disease but the host inflammatory and immune responses also play a significant role in creating periodontal pockets and irreversible bone loss. The presence of periodontal pathogens and their toxins cause elevations of proinflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha). Host response is altered by the presence of various factors including diabetes. Periodontitis and diabetes are prevalent chronic diseases with many epidemiological studies implying a two-way or bidirectional relationship between the two diseases. In this review, we focus on how hyperglycemia relates periodontitis and diabetes mellitus.