Correlation between periodontitis and prostate-specific antigen levels in the elderly Chinese male population

Mengyun Mao; Haihua Zhu; Yanyi Xie; Da Ni; Fudong Zhu; Qianming Chen

doi:10.1186/s12903-022-02171-9

Correlation between periodontitis and prostate-specific antigen levels in the elderly Chinese male population

BMC Oral Health. 2022 May 6;22(1):163. doi: 10.1186/s12903-022-02171-9.

Authors

Mengyun Mao^#¹, Haihua Zhu^#¹, Yanyi Xie¹, Da Ni¹, Fudong Zhu², Qianming Chen³

Affiliations

¹ Stomatology Hospital, School of Stomatology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Zhejiang Provincial Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases, Key Laboratory of Oral Biomedical Research of Zhejiang Province, Cancer Center of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310006, China.
² Stomatology Hospital, School of Stomatology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Zhejiang Provincial Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases, Key Laboratory of Oral Biomedical Research of Zhejiang Province, Cancer Center of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310006, China. zfd@zju.edu.cn.
³ Stomatology Hospital, School of Stomatology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Zhejiang Provincial Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases, Key Laboratory of Oral Biomedical Research of Zhejiang Province, Cancer Center of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310006, China. qmchen@zju.edu.cn.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

Background: The comparison of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels among older individuals with different periodontal statuses has not been fully investigated. Here we aimed to explore the correlation between the staging and grading of periodontitis and PSA levels in an elderly Chinese male population, which may lead to a biopsy recommendation and prevent prostate cancer as early as possible.

Methods: The study included 996 individuals aged ≥ 55 years who participated in routine postretirement physical examinations. Periodontal data included probing depth and gingival recession on four sites/tooth and on two diagonal quadrants (1-3 or 2-4) while excluding third molars, and clinical attachment loss was calculated. Periodontal status was classified as none, mild-moderate or severe periodontitis according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Periodontology case definition. Blood samples, oral health status and sociodemographic characteristics were collected by using general and oral examinations and questionnaires. Linear and logistic regressions were used to estimate the correlation between periodontitis severity and PSA levels, respectively.

Results: A total of 479 men had mild-moderate periodontitis and 355 had severe periodontitis; 162 men were periodontally healthy individuals. After adjusting for potential confounders, PSA levels were significantly lower in the individuals without periodontitis than in those with mild-moderate (P = 0.04) or severe (P = 0.03) periodontitis. However, PSA levels did not significantly correlate with periodontitis severity (P = 0.06). Although the ORs of elevated PSA were not significant, individuals with PSA ≥ 4.0 ng/mL were more likely to have periodontitis.

Conclusions: In a sample of an elderly Chinese male population, after adjusting for possible confounders, serum PSA levels in individuals with periodontitis were significantly higher than those in individuals without periodontitis, but serum PSA did not significantly correlate with periodontitis severity.

Keywords: PSA; Periodontal disease; Periodontitis; Prevention; Risk.

MeSH terms

Aged
China / epidemiology
Gingival Recession*
Humans
Logistic Models
Male
Periodontal Attachment Loss / epidemiology
Periodontitis* / epidemiology
Prostate-Specific Antigen* / analysis

Substances

Prostate-Specific Antigen