This community-based cross-sectional study aimed to assess associations between diabetes mellitus (DM) and dental morbidity measured by the Decayed, Missing, Filled Teeth (DMFT) index among adults in Central Sudan. The authors note that the relationship between DM and the DMFT index is not yet settled, motivating an assessment in a representative adult population.
Researchers conducted a community-based cross-sectional survey among adults aged 18 years and older in Central Sudan. A multistage stratified random sampling design was used to enroll participants. The total sample comprised 773 adults. The abstract reports sampling method and sample size but does not provide additional operational details such as dates of data collection, specific communities or clusters sampled, or response rates.
Dental morbidity was evaluated using the DMFT index as a continuous dependent variable. The study reports a median DMFT score of 5 with an interquartile range (IQR) of 2–10 for the study population. The DMFT index therefore served as the primary outcome to quantify caries experience and missing or filled teeth.
To identify factors associated with the DMFT index, the investigators used a modified multivariate Poisson regression model and reported Adjusted Relative Risks (ARR) with 95% confidence intervals. This approach modeled the continuous DMFT outcome while adjusting for covariates. Specific covariates included in the final model are not fully enumerated in the abstract, but reported adjusted results include age, education, employment status, diabetes diagnosis, and glycated hemoglobin.
Among the 773 enrolled adults, 14.6% had diabetes mellitus. The population median DMFT was 5 (IQR 2–10). The abstract does not provide a full breakdown of age distribution, sex, or other demographic characteristics beyond the associations reported.
After adjustment in multivariable models, several sociodemographic factors were significantly associated with the DMFT index. Specifically, older age, lower education, and unemployment were independently linked to higher DMFT scores. The abstract does not provide numeric ARRs or CIs for these sociodemographic associations in the text provided.
Diabetes mellitus was associated with higher DMFT in adjusted analyses. The reported effect estimate for DM was ARR = 1.18 with a 95% confidence interval of 1.10–1.26, indicating an 18% higher adjusted relative risk of increased DMFT associated with diabetes in this sample.
In addition to diagnosed DM, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels were independently associated with the DMFT index. The ARR for HbA1c was 1.03 (95% CI 1.02–1.04), indicating a small but statistically significant association between higher HbA1c and increased DMFT.
In this Central Sudan adult population, diabetes and higher HbA1c were independently associated with greater dental morbidity as measured by DMFT. Sociodemographic factors—higher age, lower educational attainment, and unemployment—were also associated with worse DMFT scores. Based on these findings, the authors recommend integrating oral health and systemic health initiatives in Sudan to address the observed association between glycemic status and dental disease.
The abstract provides core results but omits several methodological and contextual details that readers may need to fully appraise the study. Absent from the abstract were specifics on data-collection dates, the clinical dental examination protocol, calibration of examiners, full lists of covariates included in the multivariable models, potential sources of bias, and study limitations. Those details were not reported in the source text used for this summary.
A representative community sample of 773 adults in Central Sudan exhibited a median DMFT of 5 (IQR 2–10), with 14.6% having diabetes. After adjustment, diabetes (ARR 1.18, 95% CI 1.10–1.26) and higher HbA1c (ARR 1.03, 95% CI 1.02–1.04) were independently associated with higher DMFT scores. The study underscores the link between glycemic status and dental disease and supports integrated oral and systemic health initiatives in the region.