Alcohol Consumption as a Risk Factor for Periodontal Attachment Loss Progression

Objectives: To investigate the impact of alcohol consumption on the progression of periodontal attachment loss (PAL) over 5 years.
Methods: A multistage probability sampling strategy was used to draw a representative sample of the metropolitan area of Porto Alegre, Brazil. At baseline, 1586 individuals were selected, and 755 (47.5%) of them were available for re-examination at follow-up. Among these, 505 individuals that were 18-65 years-old, had no medical history of diabetes and had at least 6 teeth were included in this analysis. Alcohol consumption was assessed by asking participants about the usual number of drinks consumed in a week. Standard formulas were used to calculate the amount of pure alcohol consumed per day in grams. Four categories of alcohol consumption were defined: non-drinker, ≤1 glass/week, >1 glass/week and ≤1 glass/day, and >1 glass/day. Individuals showing ≥2 teeth with proximal PAL progression ≥3 mm over 5 years were classified as having disease progression. Multivariable Poisson regression models were fitted adjusting for age, gender, smoking, socioeconomic/educational status and body mass index, and relative risks (RR) were reported.
Results:
Individuals in the higher alcohol consumption category (>1 glass/day) had 27% higher risk for PAL progression (RR=1.27; 95%CI 1.04-1.54) compared to non-drinkers. The risk for male drinkers (>1 glass/day) was approximately two times higher than non-drinker males (RR=1.94; 95%CI 1.42-2.67). Never-smoker males exposed to low dosages of alcohol consumption (≤1 glass/week) had lower risk for PAL progression than non-drinkers (RR=0.52; 95%CI 0.30-0.89). No associations between alcohol consumption and PAL progression were observed for females.
Conclusions: Alcohol consumption increased the risk of PAL progression, and this effect was pronounced in male regular drinkers. Low dosages of alcohol consumption may be beneficial to prevent periodontal disease progression in males. The impact of alcohol cessation initiatives on the periodontal health should be evaluated.