Gum disease may be a key initiator of rheumatoid arthritis related autoimmunity

Medicine has clearly established a link between sick gums and other illnesses, such as heart disease, strokes, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, and recent studies have confirmed suspicions that gum disease is closely related to the onset of rheumatoid arthritis.

The results of a study presented at the Annual European Congress of Rheumatology (EULAR 2018) demonstrates increased levels of gum disease, and disease-causing bacteria, in individuals at risk of rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

“It has been shown that RA-associated antibodies, such as anti-citrullinated protein antibodies, are present well before any evidence of joint disease. This suggests they originate from a site outside of the joints,” said Dr Kulveer Mankia the Leeds Biomedical Research Centre.

“Our study is the first to describe clinical periodontal disease and the relative abundance of periodontal bacteria in these at-risk individuals. Our results support the hypothesis that local inflammation at mucosal surfaces, such as the gums in this case, may provide the primary trigger for the systemic autoimmunity seen in RA”, said Dr Mankia.

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory disease that affects a person’s joints, causing pain and disability. It can also affect internal organs. Rheumatoid arthritis is more common in older people, but there is also a high prevalence in young adults, adolescents and even children, and it affects women more frequently than men.

Source: www.sciencedaily.com