Association of Body Mass Index and Waist Circumference with Periodontal Disease

Purpose: Obesity results in many chronic diseases, and appropriate measurement of obesity will accurately evaluate the risks of other diseases. Studies have primarily focused on the correlation between a single obesity index and periodontal diseases, and studies analysing the correlation between obesity and periodontal diseases using two or more obesity indices are scarce. This study was designed to evaluate the risk of periodontal disease by combining body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC).
Materials and Methods: We analysed BMI and WC of 12,689 adults who participated in the Korea National Health and Nutrition Survey from 2016 to 2018. Participants’ general characteristics included gender, age, marital status, education, income level, smoking, alcohol use, physical activity, oral health examination, tooth brushing, diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia. periodontal diseases were determined using the Community Periodontal Index (CPI). BMI and WC were used as obesity indices. BMI was classified into underweight, normal, and high; WC was classified into normal and high. Based on the classifications, participants were categorised into six levels of obesity.
Results: The risk of periodontal disease was higher in groups 4 (odds ratio [OR]: 2.88; [95% confidence interval [95% CI]: 2.16–4.04]) and Group 6 (OR: 2.91; 95% CI: 2.22–3.83) where WC was high than in Group 5 (OR: 1.79; 95% CI: 1.34–2.40), where BMI was high.
Conclusion: The prevalence of periodontal disease is higher among obese WC subjects. High WC could be a potential risk factor for periodontal disease in adults. Keywords: body mass index, waist circumference, periodontal disease, nutrition survey, obesity