The development of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is significantly affected by the presence of periodontitis (PD), and this progression can be managed on receiving non-surgical periodontal treatment as per the recent research was done by Xinyuan Zhao and colleagues. Periodontitis, a prevalent inflammatory condition leads to tooth loss due to damage tooth-supporting tissues (periodontal ligament, cementum and alveolar bone). The devastating tooth problem shows a significant association with various systemic diseases like diabetes mellitus, rheumatoid arthritis and cardiovascular diseases etc. due to a weakened immune system and infectious microbes which lead to systemic issues.

This study proposed to determine a link between both and impact of non-surgical periodontal treatment on RA management among 64 patients categorised into four groups. Ten patients were considered as controls (PD−RA−), 18 patients with both conditions (PD+RA+), 18 patients with RA only and left 18 patients with PD only. The rheumatologic and periodontal parameters were illustrated at baseline and one month after the treatment.

All RA patients exhibited the similar periodontal status. However, higher rheumatologic parameters levels [anti-cyclic citrulline peptide antibody (ACPA), Disease Activity Score 28 (DAS28), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP)] were found among PD+RA+ than PD−RA+  patients. Also, the rheumatologic parameters among PD+RA+ group were improved after the non-surgical periodontal treatment. These outcomes reflect that RA condition was drastically affected due to periodontitis.