Aim: The effect of dietary weight loss intervention on periodontal therapy is unknown. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate whether weight loss improves the response of obese subjects to non-surgical periodontal treatment.
Materials and methods: This interventional study in obese patients was conducted at the University Hospital Dr. Peset (Valencia, Spain). Patients were divided into two groups with and without dietary therapy. All participants received non-surgical periodontal treatment. Periodontal, anthropometric and biochemical parameters were assessed at baseline and 12 weeks.
Results: A total of 78 patients were re-evaluated after intervention. All periodontal parameters improved in both groups after periodontal treatment, but the reductions in mean probing depth (PD) (0.23 mm vs. 0.12 mm) and in percentage of sites with PD 4-5 mm (10.4% vs. 5.89%) were significantly higher in the dietary group. Additionally, complement component 3 (C3) and tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) decreased in the dietary group after intervention. Percentage of change in mean PD correlated with change in C3 (r = 0.233, p = 0.043), and percentage of change in sites with PD 4-5 mm correlated with change in TNFα (r = 0.414, p = 0.012).
Conclusions: This study suggests that dietary weight loss intervention causes a greater reduction in systemic inflammation, which may enhance the response to periodontal treatment.
Keywords: diet therapy; non-surgical periodontal treatment; obesity; periodontitis; weight loss.
© 2018 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.