The effect of methamphetamine abuse on dental caries and periodontal diseases in an Eastern China city

Abstract

BackgroundDental diseases are among the most frequently reported health problems in drug abusers. However, few studies have been conducted on oral health of methamphetamine (meth) abusers in China. The aim of the present study was to investigate the caries and periodontal health profile of former meth abusers in Eastern China.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted on 162 former meth abusers in the male Zhoushan Compulsory Detoxification Center. A standardized questionnaire, which collected information about age, drug-use duration / pattern, oral hygiene habit and systemic diseases, was administered. Then, a dental examination was performed to investigate the severity of dental caries and periodontal diseases. In evaluating dental caries, the prevalence of dental caries, the scores of decayed teeth (DT), missing teeth (MT), filled teeth (FT), and decayed, missing, filled teeth (DMFT) were recorded. In evaluating periodontal diseases, community periodontal index (CPI), and the prevalence of gingival bleeding, dental calculus, periodontal pocket and loose teeth, were recorded. Additionally, the non-parametric test was adopted to analyze the potential risk factors via SPSS.ResultsAll the participants abused meth by inhalation. The mean scores of DT, MT, FT and DMFT in the former meth users were 2.72 ± 2.78, 3.07 ± 3.94, 0.33 ± 1.03 and 6.13 ± 5.20 respectively. The prevalence of gingival bleeding, dental calculus, periodontal pocket and loose teeth was 97.53%, 95.68%, 51.23% and 9.26% respectively. The DT, DMFT and CPI scores in those who had abused meth for longer than 4 years were significantly higher than those who abused for less than 4 years (P = 0.039, 0.045, P < 0.001, respectively). The DT score in those who brushed their teeth more than twice a day were significantly lower than those who brushed less (P = 0.018).ConclusionsThe status of caries and periodontal diseases among former male meth users in Eastern China was poor. Prolonged drug abuse and lower frequency of tooth brushing may be the risk factors of their poor status of caries and periodontal diseases.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12903-017-0463-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Oral Manifestation Related to Drug Abuse : A Systematic Review

“…All included studies were published between 2008 and 2018. Of the 18 included studies, 12 were cross-sectional studies, 14,15,16,18,19,20,22,24,25,26,27 4 were cohort studies, 11,12,13,17 and 2 were casecontrol studies. 21,23 The total samples from all included studies were 10389, which 4449 were male and 3868 were female.…”

“…The characteristics of included studies were recorded on table 1. The most frequent psychotropic drugs used were methamphetamine (MA) (50%) 12,13,14,18,19,20,21,26,27 , cocaine (44%) 12,17,18,22,23,25,26,28 , heroin (38%) 12,14,15,16,17,18,27 , cannabis (38%) 11,12,17,18,22,27 , opium (11%) 24,27 . 6 studies were using polydrug abusers as samples.…”

Oral manifestations in drug users: A review

“…In relation to this description of rampant caries for MA users is the study by De Carolis et al (7), which adds to the description of "meth mouth", teeth that are liable to fracture, and also another important feature: that the affectation of caries appears above all at the vestibular, cervical and proximal levels both in the maxilla and mandible with increasing involvement of the crown 7, until radicular remnants can appear as a consequence of the great coronal destruction (17,18). The study conducted by Shetty et al (8), looks for a relationship between the use of MA and the presence of an increase in dental diseases compared to those who do not use this type of drug.…”

“…This habit, due to poor oral hygiene, means that they present more caries (22). Another possible factor that leads to a poor oral state of MA users is the xerostomia that comes from the alteration caused by MA at the physiological level (7,9,18,22). In addition, the inhalation of MA can cause a caustic effect on the teeth and this may be due to the excretion of the drug through the crevicular fluid (7).…”

“…Among cigarette consumers, there was more dental recession compared to non-smokers. Therefore, in their opinion, there is a definite relationship between the use of cigarettes and caries (almost three times more compared to the non-smoker) and this is affirmed as a risk factor that leads to the greater presence of untreated caries and root caries, but it is still unknown how it can be related to periodontitis (17,18). In the article by Walter et al (23) for the first time it is also affirmed that not only is there affectation at the level of salivation, teeth and gums, but also the presence of bad breath (23).…”