Effect of the aetiology and severity of liver disease on oral health and dental treatment prior to transplantation

Elimination of dental infection foci has been recommended before liver transplantation (LT) because lifelong immunosuppression may predispose to infection spread. Association between pre-LT oral health and the aetiology and severity of chronic liver disease (CLD) was investigated retrospectively. A total of 212 adult patients (median age 51.1) who had received LT during 2000-2006 in Finland were included. Their oral health had been pre-operatively examined. Patients were divided into seven different CLD groups. Common indications for LT were primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC 25.5%), alcohol cirrhosis (ALCI 17.5%) and primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC 14.6%). Patients were also categorized by the Model for End stage Liver Disease (MELD) scoring system. Medical, dental and panoramic jaw x-ray data were analysed between groups. PBC patients had the lowest number of teeth with significant difference to PSC patients (19.7 vs. 25.6, P < 0.005, anova, t-test). ALCI patients had the highest number of tooth extractions with significant difference in comparison to PSC patients (5.6 vs. 2.5, P < 0.005). Lower MELD score resulted in fewer tooth extractions but after adjusting for several confounding factors, age was the most important factor associated with extractions (P < 0.005). The aetiology of CLD associated with the oral health status and there was a tendency towards worse dental health with higher MELD scores.