Particulate Matter 2.5 and Severe Periodontitis Among Colombian Adults

Abstract

AimsThe primary aim was to determine the association between particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) concentration at municipality‐level and severe periodontitis among adults. A second aim was to evaluate contemporaneous versus lagged effects of exposure to municipality‐level PM2.5 concentration on severe periodontitis.MethodsWe linked individual‐level data from the latest National Oral Health Survey (ENSAB‐IV) with satellite‐based estimates of annual PM2.5 concentrations at the surface level for municipalities in Colombia. Annual PM2.5 concentrations were averaged over 3, 5 and 10 years to capture contemporaneous and lagged effects, respectively. Severe periodontitis was defined using three common case definitions. The association between municipality‐level PM2.5 concentration and severe periodontitis was tested in multilevel logistic regression models adjusting for covariates.ResultsData from 9111 adults in 197 municipalities and 33 departments were analyzed. The prevalence of severe periodontitis varied from 10.4% to 29.8% depending on the case definition used. The mean PM2.5 concentration was 18.5 (SD = 2.9), 19.1 (3.0) and 18.9 (2.8) μg/m3 over the past 3, 5 and 10 years. The municipality‐level PM2.5 concentration was not associated with severe periodontitis, irrespective of the assessment period for PM2.5 concentration (3, 5, or 10 years) or the case definition of periodontitis used.ConclusionsThis study found no association between municipality‐level PM2.5 concentration and severe periodontitis among Colombian adults. No evidence of lagged effects was found either.