THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CLINICAL PERIODONTAL STATUS AND INSULIN-DEPENDENT DIABETES-MELLITUS - RESULTS AFTER 5 YEARS

THE CLINICAL PERIODONTAL STATUS of 44 insulin-dependent diabetic child ren and adolescents and 20 healthy control subjects was compared for a period of approximately 5 years. Fasting blood glucose, fructosamine, and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1) values were determined at baseline and 5 years later. The differences in the clinical and laboratory par ameters were compared during the study period. The differences between the two groups were also evaluated. The only statistically significan t difference observed in the diabetic group was clinical attachment lo ss (CAL). The CAL was statistically significantly higher in the diabet ic group compared to the controls, and a statistically significant pos itive correlation was observed between the duration of diabetes and CA L. Fructosamine was also correlated with the gingival index in the dia betic group while there was no correlation in the controls. It may be concluded that diabetes modifies the clinical status of the periodonta l tissues and increases clinical attachment lass.