Abstract
The premise for the oral-systemic diseases relationship dates to the early 20th century with the introduction of the focal infection theory that posited that oral disease affects overall health and wellbeing. While the biological plausibility for the link has been supported by experimental animal models and observational studies in humans, findings from interventional studies in which periodontal therapy failed to alleviate systemic health outcomes have often been interpreted as evidence against periodontitis contribution to the etiology of systemic health conditions. One concept of causation assumes a one-to-one correspondence between cause and effect. Nevertheless, common chronic diseases to which periodontitis is associated have multifactorial etiologies. This commentary provides an overview of Rothman's “sufficient cause” model as a framework for consideration of the oral-systemic diseases link.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 343-347 |
| Number of pages | 5 |
| Journal | Journal of Periodontology |
| Volume | 92 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs |
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| Publication status | Published - Mar 2021 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2020 American Academy of Periodontology
Funding
This work was partly supported by the National Institutes of Health/National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (Grant No.: R03DE028403). The views expressed are solely the authors' views and do not represent the official views of the NIH/NIDCR. The authors declare no conflicts of interest with respect to the authorship and/or publication of this commentary. The authors thank Dr. Gerardo Heiss (W.R. Kenan Distinguished Professor of Epidemiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) for his comments on an earlier draft of this article. This work was partly supported by the National Institutes of Health/National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (Grant No.: R03DE028403). The views expressed are solely the authors and does not represent the official views of the NIH/NIDCR. The authors declare no conflicts of interest with respect to the authorship and/or publication of this commentary. The authors thank Dr. Gerardo Heiss (W.R. Kenan Distinguished Professor of Epidemiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) for his comments on an earlier draft of this article.
| Funders | Funder number |
|---|---|
| National Institutes of Health | |
| National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research | R03DE028403 |
| University of North Carolina Wilmington |
ASJC Scopus Subject Areas
- Periodontics