Dental caries in older adults with diabetes mellitus

The prevalence of type II diabetes mellitus increases with age. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of coronal and root-surface caries experience among older adults with different levels of diabetes control. Subjects were 42 community-dwelling, dentate adults aged 54-86 yrs, including 24 diabetics and 18 nondiabetic controls. Coronal and root-surface caries and restorations were evaluated. Diabetics had fewer teeth than nondiabetics, especially those with poorer glycemic control. The mean decayed/filled surface (DFS) and filled surface (FS) values were higher, and the mean decayed surface (DS) and missing surface (MS) values were lower in nondiabetics than in diabetics, and in well-controlled diabetics compared with poorly controlled diabetics. After adjusting for missing teeth, the data were expressed as a percentage of the available surfaces, and the significant differences in DFS and FS disappeared. However, the p-values for mean number of DS and MS remained very similar to those for %DS and %MS. The number of root-surface caries was higher for the diabetics than for nondiabetics, but no corresponding difference was observed between well-controlled and poorly controlled diabetics. The results of this study suggest that diabetes and poor glycemic control may not be associated with an increased prevalence of past coronal and root-surface caries experience in older adults, but there is a tendency for more active caries lesions and missing teeth.