Methods: The subjects were 397 women (average age 68.2 years). BMDs of the lumbar spine and right proximal femur were measured through the dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry method. Based on lower BMD/young adult mean (YAM) among the two sites measured, subjects were classified into three groups: (1) Normal: BMD = 80% YAM or higher (n = 161); (2) Osteopenia: BMD = 70%–80% YAM (n = 136); and (3) Osteoporosis: BMD = less than 70% YAM (n = 100). The CAL was recorded at two sites (mesio-buccal and mid-buccal) per tooth. Multivariable analyses of the differences in periodontal parameters (average CAL and percentage of sites with CAL ≥4mm) among three BMD groups was conducted using the general linear models.
Results: After adjusting for possible confounders, individuals with osteopenia were more likely to have higher average CAL and higher percentages of sites with CAL ≥4mm than individuals with normal BMD (p = 0.009 and p = 0.020, respectively). In addition, the osteoporosis group displayed higher average CAL (p = 0.008) and higher percentages of sites with CAL ≥4mm (p = 0.018).
Conclusions: We observed a significant association between low systemic BMD and severe CAL after controlling for other important health characteristics. Our findings provide evidence of an association between systemic bone loss and CAL in Japanese community-dwelling postmenopausal women.
Acknowledgements: This study was supported by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B) No.21390558 and (C) No.40339958 from the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.