Prepregnancy Obesity and Periodontitis Among Pregnant Females With and Without Gestational Diabetes Mellitus

Background: This study explored whether there is an association between prepregnancy obesity and periodontitis among pregnant females. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted by using data from a previous case-control study at Woman's Hospital, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. One hundred fifty-nine pregnant females were recruited at their prenatal care visits. Periodontal status was assessed through dental examinations performed at an average of 31 weeks gestation. Periodontitis was defined as the presence of one or more sites exhibiting probing depth >= 4 mm or clinical attachment level >= 4 mm. A Poisson regression with robust error variance was used to estimate risk ratio (RR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). Results: Prepregnancy obesity was statistically significantly associated with periodontitis during pregnancy, with obese females at 1.7 times higher risk compared with under/normal-weight females (RR = 1.7, 95% CI = 1.2 to 2.3, P <0.01). There is no difference in the association between maternal obesity and periodontitis between females with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and females without GDM. Conclusion: There is a positive association between prepregnancy obesity and periodontitis among pregnant females.