Periodontal Disease, Diabetes & Obesity: Redefining Our Roles Part 1

Worldwide, an estimated 390 million people have diabetes — and that number keeps growing. This patient population has specialized needs when it comes to periodontal care. People with poorly controlled diabetes are at significantly greater risk for periodontitis, and conversely, periodontitis has been implicated in predisposing people to diabetes through insulin resistance.

Obesity may be the single greatest threat to global health. A known risk factor for diabetes, obesity has more than doubled since 1980, and projections suggest that 1.2 billion people will be obese by 2030. Recent studies have proposed a correlation between obesity and periodontal disease and numerous investigations have also suggested an interrelationship between Metabolic Syndrome and periodontal disease.

This energizing, revelatory course empowers dentists and dental hygienists to redefine their roles in caring for people who have or who are at risk for diabetes, and Metabolic Syndrome or obesity with a focus on interrelationships with periodontal disease. By exploring the biological pathways that link periodontal disease, diabetes, and obesity, oral healthcare providers will have a better understanding of their unique opportunity to intervene in progressive screening, referral and medical-dental co-management of people in this at-risk population. Participants will have a platform to contribute to a lively case-based discussion that will help stimulate critical thinking on how to overcome barriers to implement protocols to better care for people who have or who are at risk for diabetes, and obesity. If your team is still treating patients who have diabetes and/or who are obese, the same way you treat healthy patients, this course is a must.