The Association between Chronic Periodontitis and

Abstract- Chronic periodontitis although a common disorder in adults, is found associated with a number of systemic conditions like diabetes mellitus, atherosclerosis, coronary heart disease-CHD and certain chronic inflammatory disorders including rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) and Chronic Periodontitis-CP share certain common features like both being chronic inflammatory disease associated with bone loss and destruction of the soft tissue surrounding the bone ultimately leading to loss of function. Etiopathologically both are initiated by some pathogens like bacteria and believe to be further mediated by host immune-inflammatory dysregulation. Elevated levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines leading to bone resorption is reported in both conditions. Resolving periodontal infection seems to have positive effect on the treatment of RA. Both respond to certain drugs like NSAIDS and tetracyclines. This article reviews the association of CP and RA and how the successful treatment of periodontal condition affects the prognosis of the other disease. Index Terms- chronic periodontitis, rheumatoid arthritis, association I