Different type of periodontitis and gingivitis in patients with major thalassemia comparing to healthy people

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Iran is located on the thalassemia belt and has the highest prevalence rate of patients compared to the general population in the world. This investigation was performed to determine the prevalence of gingivitis and periodontitis in thalassemia patients in comparison to healthy people and evaluate the relationship between periodontal disease and age, gender, splenectomy and dosage of desferal. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, 133 thalassemia patients and 133 healthy people were examined. Clinical examination was performed by periodontal probe and age, gender, desferal dosage, smoking, occlusion, dental alignment were recorded. The results were analyzed using ANOVA, Chi-square, and t-test. RESULTS: Prevalence of gingivitis and periodontitis in thalassemia patients was significantly higher than the control group (P = 0.049). However, no difference was observed in the severity of periodontitis. Results showed that age, xerostomia and splenectomy are associated with periodontitis, and dental alignment was correlated with gingivitis. Calculus index (CI) was reported to be more in thalassemia patients, but results showed no significant difference in debris index (DI) however DI was significantly higher in anterior maxillary sextant. CONCLUSION: Due to the higher prevalence of gingivitis and periodontitis in patients with thalassemia and susceptibility to infection, preventive and therapeutic treatment is essential in these patients.