Periodontitis and orofacial health-related systemic impairment in patients with brain injury: a factor analysis approach.

Aim: To investigate the association of periodontitis to orofacial health-related systemic impairment in patients with acquired brain injury (ABI).Methods: Ninety individuals with ABI were included. Full mouth periodontal examination was performed. Orofacial health-related 'motor' and 'cognitive' scores, dysphagia and feeding status, onset of pneumonia were retrieved from e-journal. Factor analysis dubbed periodontal data as 'moderate' and 'severe' periodontitis while orofacial health-related brain injury scores were dubbed into 'motor' and 'cognitive' domains. Association between periodontal findings and systemic impairments were analyzed using multivariable linear regression models.Results: Higher scores of 'moderate' periodontitis were significantly associated with lower scores of motor impairment (beta = -0.2), feeding tube dependency (beta = 0.2) and dysphagia (beta = 1.21), whereas higher scores of 'severe' periodontitis were associated with lower scores of cognition (beta = -0.2) and reduced dental visits (beta = -0.2). Both periodontal domains were significantly associated with aging (beta = 0.02) and onset of pneumonia (beta = 0.5-0.7).Conclusions: Robust association between 'moderate' periodontitis and motor impairment, feeding problems and dysphagia, reflects an acute clinical condition, demanding cross-disciplinary intervention. Periodontal examination can be an early indicator tool for systemic chronic conditions, as ABI and periodontitis share a common environmental, social and biological background. Periodontitis majorly affects ageing population and are prone to pneumonia, compromising rehabilitation plan.