Tooth loss and risk of oral squamous cell carcinoma in Chinese Han population

Objective: Association between tooth loss and oral cancer risk was investigated primary studies and meta-analyses, however, the results remain inconsistent. This study is to test the association between tooth loss and oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) in Chinese Han population. Methods: Case-control study including histologically confirmed OSCC cases and healthy controls individually matched to the cases for age, sex, and district of residence between May 1, 2010, and Match 31, 2014. Univariate and multiple logistic regression models were used to calculate odds ratios (ORs) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) using the STATA 12.0 software. Results: Finally included 150 OSCC patients and 167 healthy controls. Cases had a significantly higher mean (SD) number of lost teeth than controls (10.03 +/- 6.62 vs. 8.69 +/- 5.20; P = 0.045). The results of univariate analysis and adjustment for smoking and alcohol showed a non-significant association between tooth loss and OSCC. After adjustment for age at diagnosis, gender, smoking, alcohol use, body mass index, and history of diabetes mellitus, those in the upper tertiles of lost tooth were significantly more likely to have OSCC (OR = 3.64, 95% CI = 1.15-11.53, P = 0.03; P for trend = 0.11) than in the lower tertiles. The unadjusted and adjusted results of per teeth also revealed nonsignificant association. Conclusions: Tooth loss may be not associated with risk of oral cancer in this case-control study. The relevant large-scale studies in Chinese are suggested to perform.