Heartburn medication may decrease severity of gum disease, finds study

Additional investigators include first author and UB alumnus Bhavneet Chawla, and Robert E. Cohen, DDS, PhD, professor of periodontics and endodontics in the UB School of Dental Medicine.

The study sought to determine whether a relationship exists between PPI use and gum disease. The researchers analyzed clinical data from more than 1,000 periodontitis patients either using or not using PPIs. Probing depths were used as an indicator of periodontitis severity.

Only 14% of teeth from patients who used PPIs had probing depths of 6 millimeters or more, compared to 24% of teeth from patients who did not use the medication. And 27% of teeth from patients using PPIs had probing depths of 5 millimeters or more, compared to 40% of teeth from non-PPI users, according to the study.

The researchers theorized that PPIs' ability to alter bone metabolism or the gut microbiome, as well as potentially impact periodontal microorganisms, may help lessen the severity of gum disease.

Additional studies are under development to determine if this relationship can be found in other populations of patients with gum disease, and to learn to what extent the relationship can be directly attributed to PPIs, says Yerke.