Periodontitis as a Risk Factor in Cardiovascular Diseases

Periodontitis is a multifacrious group of diseases whose common characteristics include loss of anatomical structures around tooth. This process occurs due to imbalance between bacterial plaque influence and immunological system of the host - therefore inflammation in the periodontium occurs. Clinical manifestations of periodontitis include: attachment loss, degradation of periodontal ligaments, proteolysis of alveolar process and finally hemorrhage during clinical examination. There is a growing evidence that periodontitis is a significant factor influencing cardiovascular diseases, for instance coronary heart syndrome, peripheral arteries disease, atherosclerosis, myocardial infarction, infectious endocarditis - a disease manifesting itself by anatomical and functional changes in sinoatrial valves. Its relation to oral infection is well grounded. The main etiological factor is oral colonization by Streptococcus viridians. Apart from widely known risk factors common for periodontitis and cardiovascular diseases mentioned above, such as age, sex, socioeconomical status, metabolic factors, stress, smoking tobacco, it is postulated that there exists a link between these diseases through inflammation markers (for instance CRP, IL-6, white blood cells count), infectious factors (transitionary bacteriema), hemostasis and fibrinolysis markers (PAI-1), metabolic markers (triglicerydes, LDL, blood glucose). This work is a review of most up-to-date scientific works referring to new factors that confirm clinical correlation between periodontis and cardiovascular diseases