Arthritis and periodontal disease are generally not thought of as occurring together. We generally think of these inflammatory diseases individually, without much thought as to how they are affected by other diseases or how they may exacerbate disease in the body.
Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune inflammatory disease in which our own cells attack the joints. The disease causes inflammation, pain and stiffness. This can progress to severe bone damage, causing a disability of the affected joints.
Periodontal disease is a chronic inflammatory disease caused by bacteria that trigger an inflammation of the gums. Further breakdown is caused by our own cells in defense against the periodontal bacteria..
In separate studies, researchers have found a two-way relationship between these two conditions where rheumatoid arthritis patients face higher risks of developing gum disease and periodontal disease patients have increased risk of rheumatoid arthritis.
What Is Rheumatoid Arthritis?
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a disease that leads to inflammation of the joints and surrounding tissues. It can also affect other organs. The cause of Rheumatoid Arthritis is not known. It is classified as an autoimmune disease, which means the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue. It can occur at any age, but is more common in middle age. Women get rheumatoid arthritis more often than men.
The symptoms can include:
-Morning stiffness, lasting longer than 1 hour, is common. Joints may feel warm, tender, and stiff when not used for an hour or so.
-Joint pain is usually felt on the same joint on both sides of the body.
-Over time, joints may lose their range of motion and may become deformed.
Other symptoms include:
-Chest pain when taking a breath (pleurisy).
-Dry eyes and mouth (Sjogren syndrome).
-Eye burning, itchy eyes, and discharge from eyes.
-Nodules under the skin (usually a sign of more severe disease process).
-Numbness, tingling, or burning in the hands and feet.
-Difficulty sleeping.
Periodontal Disease and Arthritis Link
There is a high incidence of periodontal disease in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. The link between the two can include:
–Periodontal disease and rheumatoid arthritis both occur as a result of chronic inflammatory responses by the body. This leads to destruction of supporting tissues and bone.
-They have similar characteristics, risk factors, and pathological processes. Smoking is a common risk factor between rheumatoid arthritis and periodontal disease. Smoking causes both conditions to worsen.
-When a patient has both rheumatoid arthritis and periodontal disease, they have more anti-citrullinated protein antibodies (ACPA), which cause even more inflammation in the gums and other parts of the body, making all inflammatory conditions worsen . ACPA increases rheumatoid arthritis disease activity and the level of inflammatory markers.
-research studies have found that patients with both periodontal disease and rheumatoid arhtritis have experienced decreased pain, swelling and stiffness after periodontal gum treatments.
-Periodontal disease is responsible for chronic inflammation in the mouth, which can trigger chronic inflammation in other parts of the body, including the joints.
How Does Periodontal Disease Trigger Rheumatoid Arthritis?
Periodontal disease can set off rheumatoid arthritis in many ways:
-The bacteria causing periodontal disease enters the blood stream and settles in the synovial fluid that lubricates the joints triggering inflammation in the joints.
-research studies have established that periodontal disease may decrease the effectiveness of tumor necrosis factor inhibitor treatment for rheumatoid arthritis. This makes it harder to treat rheumatoid arthritis using this treatment in patients with periodontal disease.
-The inflammation caused by the periodontal disease causing bacteria can raise the level of cytokines, which promote the release of CRP from the liver and result in systematic inflammation in the whole body, causing inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis.
-Treatment of periodontal disease decreases rheumatoid arthritis symptoms such as joint pain and inflammation.
Can Rheumatoid Arthritis Contribute to Periodontal Disease?
The following are a few ways that rheumatoid arthritis can add to periodontal disease:
-Generally, symptoms from periodontal disease are more severe in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. For example, they have deeper periodontal pockets between the teeth and gums, making it easier to develop infections.Rheumatoid arthritis sufferers are faced with an increased risk of developing periodontal disease and severe jawbone loss.
-While both conditions stem from a chronic inflammatory response and weakened immune system, rheumatoid arthritis damages hand dexterity function, making it hard for patients to take proper care of their teeth using regular dental hygiene techniques. This not only increases the chance of developing new gum problems, but also makes existing gum problems much worse.
-Rheumatoid arthritis increases the risk of developing periodontal problems since alveolar bone loss in arthritic patients is linked to decreasing periodontal health, which has a greater chance of progressing into periodontal disease.
-The bacteria that cause gum disease access the blood circulation. This makes it possible for antibiotics administered to treat arthritis to also kill gum disease bacteria. This way, treating arthritis leads to an improvement in periodontal disease and treating gum disease improves the symptoms of arthritis.
Conclusion
It is important to remember these two conditions do not always occur together. There are plenty of periodontal disease patients who don’t have arthritis and many patients with rheumatoid disease who have healthy gums. While it is not clear which conditions occur first, and there is no conclusive evidence that these two conditions have a connection, the awareness of the association between rheumatoid arthritis and periodontal disease makes it necessary for patients of rheumatoid arthritis to visit a dentist or periodontist for evaluations and treatment regularly. Patients of rheumatoid arthritis should also make a point of regularly practicing proper dental hygiene maintenance, including brushing and flossing.
