Awareness and Behavior of the Diabetic Patients toward Periodontal Disease

Background: Periodontal disease is a chronic inflammatory disease that leads to tooth loss. It is influenced by multiple systemic diseases, Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the most commonly known diseases. Both disease entities have a bidirectional relationship, as periodontal disease effects glycemic control and diabetes effects progressions and severity of periodontal disease. the aim of this study is to evaluate the awareness of the diabetic patient toward periodontal disease through testing their knowledge and examining the oral cavity to assess their attitudes to periodontal health and oral hygiene practices. Materials and methods: This study is a Cross sectional clinical study that took place in the Benghazi Diabetic treatment center in Libya 2018. Ethical approval was gained from the diabetic center. Three hundred patients were examined and questioned by four periodontists with age range from 16 to 80 years old. Evaluation of Periodontal status was done by using Plaque index (PI), and Periodontal disease index (PDI). Statistical analysis was done using using SPSS statistical package. Results: The mean age of patients were 55.3 years old, with 94 % of them were type II DM.59.7 % of the sample were female. Less than half of the participants knew about periodontal disease (40.7 %). Female patients showed significant better plaque index score than males with P value (0.001 %). Furthermore, significant correlation was found between plaque index and periodontal disease index with (P value less than0.001). In regard oral hygiene practice 40.3 % brushed once daily. And a significant relation was found between using toothbrush and both of the PI and PDI. Conclusion: the awareness of the diabetic patients needs to be raised through education programs. Physicians should encourage diabetic patients to visit dentists regularly to help prevent periodontal disease progression and correct oral care behaviors.