Assessment Of Oral Mucosal Epithelium In Type 2 Diabetic Patients Using Exfoliative Cytology: A Preliminary Study

Diabetes mellitus (DM) has emerged as a worldwide health concern. By vigilantly tracking the well-being of individuals affected by diabetes, it becomes possible to thwart diabetic complications. Our objective was to scrutinize changes in the structure and cellular characteristics of buccal epithelial cells in type 2 DM patients through the utilization of oral exfoliative cytology techniques. This endeavor seeks to establish the significance of such analysis in the context of public health screening, as well as the diagnosis and monitoring of diabetes mellitus. A total of 72 type 2 diabetic individuals and 46 control individuals underwent oral smears collection from two distinct oral locations: the buccal mucosa and tongue dorsum. These oral smears were subsequently stained with Papanicolaou solution. A comprehensive assessment of both quantitative and qualitative alterations was conducted on each slide. Specifically, 50 well-defined cells per slide were meticulously examined under a microscope, and photographs were subjected to morphometric analysis. Diabetic group exhibited significantly greater cytoplasmic and nuclear areas compared to control. Conversely, the cytoplasmic/nuclear ratio was lower in the control group compared to the diabetic group. Moreover, at both smear sites, a higher proportion of cells displayed nuclear changes in the diabetic group. These findings suggest that diabetes mellitus can induce discernible modifications in the oral epithelium, which can be detected through the exfoliative cytology method employed in this study. Consequently, this method holds promise as a viable approach for assessing this disease as well as progression.