Dental implant therapy could significantly help diabetics maintain a healthy diet and control their blood sugar levels, according to the results of a study recently conducted at the Health Science Center.
“Increased blood sugar levels may impair the way our bones heal,” said Thomas Oates Jr., D.M.D., Ph.D., principle investigator of the Dental Implants in Diabetics study and associate professor of periodontics. “Several previous studies suggest that most diabetics who lack good glycemic (blood sugar) control are unable to receive dental implant therapy due to the implant’s inability to heal properly to the jaw bone.”
But Dr. Oates found that while it may take the average person two months for an implant to heal, it might take four months for a diabetic patient lacking good glycemic control.
“The good news is that it is possible for diabetic patients with poor glycemic control to benefit from dental implants,” he said.
The research team examined whether dental implants could be effective and beneficial in diabetics. “Instead of depriving diabetics of a more natural form of tooth replacement with implants until they can maintain good glycemic control, we wanted to know if we could use implant therapy to improve the oral condition for patients lacking good glycemic control,” Dr. Oates said.
Diabetics can suffer from a host of health problems, including periodontal (gum) disease, which often leads to tooth loss. Since most diabetics are on a strict diet, it is important for them to have proper oral conditions to follow the necessary diet.
Fourteen percent of Bexar County residents struggle with diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association. While Hispanics are twice more likely than non-Hispanics to have diabetes, Dr. Oates considered the high Hispanic population in South Texas as he conducted the study.
Dr. Oates said complications in previous studies included not thoroughly examining the amount of time it takes for implants to heal in both non-diabetic and diabetic patients.
“After the implant healed in non-diabetics, it was assumed that the diabetic patients in the study would have healed, too. So, a significant amount of the diabetic patients’ dental implants would fail. We know now that implant therapy might be one of the best ways for diabetics to control their blood sugar levels. They may simply need extra healing time.”
