Epidemiological pattern of COVID-19 and its association with periodontal health in an urban Indian cohort

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Ishita Gupta, Centre for Chronic Disease Control, New Delhi, India; Shivani Patel, Emory University; Dimple Kondal, Emory University; Michael Goodman, Emory University; Sailesh Mohan, Centre for Chronic Disease Control, New Delhi, India; Mohammed Ali, Emory University; Nikhil Tandon, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India; Venkat KM Narayan, Emory Global Diabet Res Ctr; Kabayam Venkat Narayan, Emory University; Dorairaj Prabhakaran, Emory University; Krithiga Shridhar, Centre for Chronic Disease Control, New Delhi, India
• Language: English
• Date: 2023-03-27
• Publisher: FRONTIERS MEDIA SA
• Publication Version: Final Published Version
• Copyright Statement: © 2023 Gupta, Patel, Kondal, Goodman, Mohan, Ali, Tandon, Narayan, Prabhakaran and Shridhar.
• License: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1108465
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: FRONTIERS IN PUBLIC HEALTH
• Volume: 11
• Start Page: 1108465
• End Page: 1108465
• Grant/Funding Information: The work was supported by the Cardiometabolic Risk Reduction in South Asia Surveillance Study was funded in part by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Department of Health and Human Services [Contract no. HHSN268200900026C] and the United Health Group (Minneapolis, MN, USA). Research reported in this publication is a sub-study of the CARRS study supported by the National Heart, Lung, And Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number P01HL154996. Several members of the research team were/are supported by the Fogarty International Center (FIC) and the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development, NIH through Grant Number 1 D43 HD065249, FIC at the NIH under Award Number D43TW009135 and NIH, National Cancer Institute grant number P20CA210298-01. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
• Keywords: COVID-19; gingival disease; periodontal disease; Science & Technology; SARS-CoV-2; POPULATION; Life Sciences & Biomedicine; Public, Environmental & Occupational Health; oral health
• Research Categories: Health Sciences, Public Health; Health Sciences, Medicine and Surgery

Abstract

Background: Studies have highlighted a possible influence of gingival and periodontal disease (PD) on COVID-19 risk and severity. However, the evidence is based on hospital-based studies and community-level data are sparse. Objectives: We described the epidemiological pattern of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Delhi and evaluated the associations of gingival and PD with incident COVID-19 disease in a regionally representative urban Indian population. Methods: In a prospective study nested within the Centre for Cardiometabolic Risk Reduction in South-Asia (CARRS) study, participants with clinical gingival and periodontal status available at baseline (2014–16) (n = 1,727) were approached between October 2021 to March 2022. Information on COVID-19 incidence, testing, management, severity was collected as per the WHO case criteria along with COVID-19 vaccination status. Absolute incidence of COVID-19 disease was computed by age, sex, and oral health. Differences in rates were tested using log-rank test. Poisson regression models were used to evaluate independent associations between gingival and PD and incidence of COVID-19, adjusted for socio-demographic and behavioral factors, presence of comorbidity, and medication use. Results: Among 1,727 participants, the mean age was 44.0 years, 45.7% were men, 84.5% participants had baseline gingival or PD and 89.4% participants had received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine. Overall, 35% (n = 606) participants were tested for COVID-19 and 24% (n = 146/606) tested positive. As per the WHO criteria total number of cases was 210, constituting 12% of the total population. The age and sex-specific rates of COVID-19 were higher among men and older participants, but women aged >60 years had higher rates than men of same age. The incidence rate did not differ significantly between those having gingival or PD and healthy periodontium (19.1 vs. 16.5/1,000 person-years) and there was no difference in risk of COVID-19 by baseline oral disease status. Conclusion: Gingival and PD were not associated with increased risk of COVID-19.