Periodontitis appears to mark a worsening in the gut in patients with inflammatory bowel disease, according to a study presented at the 2022 meeting of the European Crohn’s and Colitis Organisation.
Both periodontitis and IBD are marked by dysbiotic microbiota and inflammation, according to lead author Johan Burisch, MD, PhD, a clinical epidemiologist at Hvidovre Hospital, in Copenhagen, Denmark. Given that the mouth is part of the gastrointestinal tract, the connection between the two diseases, while poorly understood, isn’t surprising, he said.