Periodontitis in Patients With Osteoarthritis

This is an observational study, and participants did not receive any study-specific intervention measures.

This is an observational study, and participants did not receive any study-specific intervention measures.

Periodontal probing depth - the distance in millimeters from the gingival margin to the base of the periodontal pocket. It is measured using a standard periodontal probe at 6 sites per tooth. Higher values indicate deeper periodontal pockets (worse periodontal status), while lower values indicate shallower pockets (better periodontal status).

PCR test (polymerase chain reaction, 7500 Real-Time PCR System, Applied Biosystems/Method RT-PCR with Sybr-Green/melting curve analysis, validated according to micro-IDent®, Hain Lifescience GmbH, CE-IVD and PeriodontScreen Real-TM CE, Sacace Biotechnologies) is planned for the most common periodontopathogenic bacteria: Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Tannerella forsythensis, Prevotella intermedia, and Treponema denticola. The test would be taken from all patients in the study group diagnosed with periodontitis.

Samples of bacteria would be collected from the periodontal pocket and synovial fluid. When testing bacteria from periodontal pockets, sterile paper points are inserted to the bottom of the deepest pockets and left in situ for 20 seconds. The paper points are then placed in a sterile test tube, tightly closed, and sent to the molecular laboratory of the Analiza Polyclinic. The procedure for collecting bacteria from synovial fluid also include

OHIP-14 is a 14-item questionnaire that assesses the impact of oral health on oral health-related quality of life. Each item is scored on a Likert scale from 0 to 4 (0 = never, 1 = hardly ever, 2 = occasionally, 3 = fairly often, 4 = very often). The total score ranges from 0 to 56. Higher scores indicate worse oral health-related quality of life, while lower scores indicate better oral health-related quality of life.

Gingival recession is the distance in millimeters from the cementoenamel junction to the gingival margin. It is measured using a standard periodontal probe. Higher values indicate more pronounced gingival recession (worse condition), while lower values or a value of 0 indicate a normal position of the gingival margin.

Clinical attachment level is the sum of probing depth and gingival recession at a given tooth site, expressed in millimeters. It represents the distance from the cementoenamel junction to the base of the periodontal pocket. Higher values indicate greater clinical attachment loss (worse condition), while lower values indicate a more preserved periodontal supporting structures.

Full-mouth plaque score - plaque accumulation will be assessing the presence or absence of supragingival plaque on six surfaces of each tooth. The results will be expressed as the percentage of plaque-positive surfaces relative to the total number of examined surfaces. FMPS is calculated by dividing the number of sites with plaque by the total number of examined sites and multiplying by 100. Scores range from 0% to 100%. Higher percentages indicate greater plaque accumulation (worse condition), while lower percentages indicate better oral hygiene.

Full-mouth bleeding score - gingival inflammation will be assessed recorded dichotomously (presence/absence of bleeding) following gentle probing of the gingival sulcus at standardized sites. The outcome will be expressed as the percentage of bleeding-positive sites, reflecting the degree of gingival inflammatory response. FMBS is calculated by dividing the number of bleeding sites by the total number of examined sites and multiplying by 100. Scores range from 0% to 100%. Higher percentages indicate greater gingival inflammation (worse condition), while lower percentages indicate healthier gingival tissue.