Relationship between dental caries and metabolic syndrome among 13998 middle-aged urban Chinese

Background: The association between dental caries and metabolic syndrome (MetS) is inconsistent. The aim of the present study was to assess the relationship between dental caries and MetS and its components in a middle-aged Chinese population. Methods: A cross-sectional analysis was performed of 13998 participants aged 45-65years undergoing a health check during 2013-14. An index variable of decayed, missing, and filled teeth (DMFT) was calculated. Logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) after adjustment for sex, age, education level, dietary habits, alcohol use, smoking, physical activity, and periodontitis. Results: Of the 13998 participants, 6164 had dental caries and 7834 did not; 3571 had MetS, whereas 10427 did not. Participants with severe caries showed a higher prevalence of MetS, abdominal obesity, elevated blood pressure, dyslipidemia, and hyperglycemia than those with mild or no caries (all P < 0.01). Adjusted ORs for MetS for those with two or more dental caries and those with two or more DMFT were 1.12 (95% CI 1.14-1.74) and 1.09 (95% CI, 0.89-1.21), respectively (P-trend < 0.001). Stratified analysis by individual MetS components showed that caries were associated with MetS among subjects with hyperglycemia (OR 1.14 [95%CI, 0.98-1.34]; P < 0.001). However, there was no significant relationship between caries and abdominal obesity, hypertriglyceridemia, low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and elevated blood pressure (adjusted ORs [95% CIs] 0.98 [0.82-1.16], 1.01 [0.85-1.19], 0.84 [0.70-1.00], and 0.96 [0.86-1.13], respectively; all P > 0.05). Conclusions: Dental caries were associated with MetS among middle-aged Chinese in the present study.