Adults with diabetes more likely to have tooth decay, missing teeth

A study published in Diabetic Medicine found that adults with diabetes were 1.49 times more likely to develop coronal caries and 1.46 more likely to have root caries than those without diabetes, and those with diabetes were 0.31 times less likely to keep all their teeth. The researchers analyzed data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2015 to 2018, involving 10,249 adults aged 20 years and older, according to Healio. “The study sheds light on the importance of an integrated health care system that includes, but is not limited to, both medical and oral health services that provide easy access to vulnerable populations to improve oral health literacy and access to dental services utilization within the diabetic population,” the authors wrote.