Effect of periodontal treatment on diabetes-related healthcare costs: a retrospective study

Introduction Periodontitis has been considered a sixth complication of diabetes. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of periodontal treatment on diabetes-related healthcare costs in patients with diabetes. Research design and methods A retrospective analysis was done, exploiting unique and large-scale claims data of a Dutch health insurance company. Data were extracted for a cohort of adults who had been continuously insured with additional dental coverage for the years 2012-2018. Individuals with at least one diabetes-related treatment claim in 2012 were included for analysis. A series of panel data regression models with patient-level fixed effects were estimated to assess the impact of periodontal treatment on diabetes-related healthcare costs. Results A total of 41 598 individuals with diabetes (age range 18-100 years; 45.7% female) were included in the final analyses. The median diabetes-related healthcare costs per patient in 2012 were euro38.45 per quarter (IQR euro11.52-euro263.14), including diagnoses, treatment, medication and hospitalization costs. The fixed effect models showed euro12.03 (95% CI -euro15.77 to -euro8.29) lower diabetes-related healthcare costs per quarter of a year following periodontal treatment compared with no periodontal treatment. Conclusions Periodontitis, a possible complication of diabetes, should receive appropriate attention in diabetes management. The findings of this study provide corroborative evidence for reduced economic burdens due to periodontal treatment in patients with diabetes.