Periodontal Disease Linked to Erectile Dysfunction

Mouth acts as a window to a lot of systemic diseases and serves as a port of entry of the various infections that can alter and affect the immune status of the person [1]. Periodontitis is a destructive inflammatory disease of the supporting tissues of the teeth and is caused by specific microorganisms or group of specific microorganisms resulting in progressive destruction of periodontal ligament and alveolar bone with periodontal pocket formation, gingival recession or both. The host responds to the periodontal infections with an array of events involving both innate and adaptive immunity [2]. Periodontal diseases are recognized as infectious processes that require bacterial presence and a host response and are further affected and modified by other local, environmental, and genetic factors. The key organisms that cause periodontal disease were anaerobes including Aggregatibacteractino mycetemcomitans, Porphyromonasgingivalis, Prevotellaintermedia, Tannerella forsythia, Fusobacteriumnucleatum, Peptostreptococcus micros, and Campylobacter rectus [3]. Association of periodontal infection with organ systems like cardiovascular system, endocrine system, reproductive system, and respiratory system etc. makes periodontal infection a complex multiphase disease. Inflamed periodontal tissues produce significant amounts of pro-inflammatory cytokines, mainly interleukin1 beta (IL-1β), IL-6, PGE2, and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), which may have systemic effects on the host.