Oral health status of patients with leukemia: a systematic review with meta-analysis

Objective: The aim of this study was to systematically review the literature regarding the prevalence of periodontal diseases and dental caries in patients with leukemia.

Methods: An electronic search for observational studies on oral health outcomes in patients with leukemia was performed on Medline/PUBMED, Embase, Web of Science, and Science Direct databases up to April 2020. Dental caries and periodontal diseases were assessed using the following standardized parameters, respectively: mean number of decayed, missing and filled teeth (DMFT), and presence of marginal inflammation (gingivitis) or clinical attachment loss (periodontitis). Two independent reviewers conducted all phases of review. Included studies reporting similar outcomes were subjected to random-effects meta-analysis.

Results: From 1,246 retrieved references, 39 were included. Most studies were cross-sectional investigations involving young patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Nine studies presented high risk of bias and were not included on quantitative analyses. All studies in the meta-analysis (n = 14) were conducted with children/teenagers with acute leukemia. Pooled gingivitis prevalence in patients before and during leukemia treatment was 85% (95%CI 75, 97%; 4 studies) and 82% (95%CI 71, 94%; 6 studies), respectively. Pooled DMFT means were 2.28 (95%CI 1.31, 3.25; 7 studies) and 3.65 (95%CI 1.45, 5.86; 5 studies) respectively for patients during and after leukemia treatment. Studies regarding periodontitis prevalence were too few to run a meta-analysis.

Conclusions: Based on cross-sectional data, young people with acute leukemia have high prevalence of gingivitis and caries experience. These findings indicate that the effect of leukemia on oral health still needs to be better investigated.