Progression of age-related periodontitis: Literature review

Background: Periodontitis is currently defined as a multifactorial chronic inflammatory disease associated with deregulation of the biofilm with the susceptible host, which can lead to damage the periodontal tissue due to an inappropriate immune response, characterized by a neutrophilic inflammation with subsequent destruction of proteolytic connective tissue. Nowadays, there are arguments that associate the progression of this disease in elderly people, for this reason the objective of this article is to carry out a literature review that links the progression of periodontitis associated with age, in addition to determining if at an older age there is higher prevalence of periodontitis.
Methodology: A systematic bibliographic search was carried out in 5 scientific databases: PubMed, Cochrane, Scielo, Science Direct, EBSCO of 45 articles published in English and Spanish in the last 5 years (2018-2022).
Results: Evidence suggests that elderly patients (60 years and older) are more likely to develop periodontitis due to a deficient immune response that keep them off from having a correct inflammatory response to various factors, there is also postulated a prolonged exposure to the etiological factor.
Conclusions: Evidence reports that older patients have a higher prevalence of periodontitis because aging decreases immune response, which is responsible for protecting the body against different factors. Finally, as patient’s age, nutritional status is altered thereby the digestive process and nutrient absorption from food, which interact with other well-defined risk factors to increase susceptibility to periodontal disease.