Antibodies to Periodontal Pathogens Are Associated With Coronary Heart Disease

OBJECTIVE—We analyzed the association of coronary heart disease (CHD) and serology of periodontitis in a random sample (n=1163) of men (aged 45 to 74 years) by determining serum IgG-antibodies to Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans and Porphyromonas gingivalis. METHODS AND RESULTS—CHD (n=159) was more prevalent among edentulous than dentate subjects (19.8% and 12.1%, P =0.003). In the dentate population, CHD was more common among subjects seropositive for P. gingivalis compared with those seronegative (14.0% and 9.7%, P =0.029). Accordingly, CHD was more prevalent in subjects with a high combined antibody response than those with a low response (17.4% and 11.1%, P =0.026). When adjusted for age and several CHD risk factors, the subjects with a high combined antibody response had an odds ratio of 1.5 (95% CI, 0.95 to 2.50, P =0.077) for prevalent CHD. In a linear regression model, the combined antibody response was directly associated with prevalent CHD (P =0.046) and inversely with serum HDL cholesterol concentration (P =0.050). CONCLUSIONS—In conclusion, edentulousness and serum antibodies to major periodontal pathogens were associated with CHD. This suggests that periodontal infection or response of the host against the infection may play a role in the pathogenesis of CHD.