Dental caries-related primary hypertension in children and adolescents: Cross-sectional study

Background: Hypertension is a growing clinical problem in pediatric population. Also, the cause of hypertension is usually unknown and it may result from systemic inflammation related to tooth decay.

Aim: To estimate the potential association in cross-sectional study between tooth decay and hypertension in children and adolescents.

Patients and methods: Study group-65 children diagnosed with primary arterial hypertension; control subjects-44 normotensive children. Blood pressure, dental examination, measurement of salivary cortisol, alpha-amylase, secretory IgA, and lysozyme concentrations were performed in all of the children.

Results: Hyper- and normotensive children had similar peripheral blood morphology and serum biochemical parameters, except of uric acid concentration, which was significantly higher in the study group (p = .047). Salivary evening concentrations of cortisol and alpha-amylase were significantly higher in hypertensive children (p = .002 and p = .004, respectively). Although 24-hr systolic blood pressure (SBP), including daytime and nighttime SBP, correlated with "decay," "microalbuminuria," "BMI," and "glomerular filtration rate" (r > .75, r > .7, r < .68, and r < .43, respectively), in multivariate analysis only "decay" was associated with hypertension both in children and in adolescents (p < .0001).

Conclusion: Tooth decay in children/adolescents might be regarded as a potent trigger factor of hypertension in individuals in whom all other causes of secondary arterial hypertension have been excluded.