Illicit drug abuse affects periodontal health status.

OBJECTIVE To determine periodontal health status among drug addicts in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. METHODS Drug addiction recovery patients were recruited from Al-Amal Rehabilitation Hospital, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia between October and December 2012. A questionnaire was used to determine socio-demographic data, oral hygiene measures, and previous drug abuse. Full periodontal charting was carried out including probing depth, recession, attachment loss, bleeding on probing, and plaque index. RESULTS A total of 57 male patients participated in the study. Cannabis was the drug of choice of most (66.7%) of the subjects, followed by amphetamines (52.6%), alcohol (43.9%), heroin (35.1%), and 8.8% reported using cocaine. All participants had some form of periodontitis with moderate chronic periodontitis affecting 60% of the sample, while mild periodontitis affected 29.1%, and severe periodontitis affected 10.9% of the sample. Cocaine and heroin users showed higher mean clinical attachment loss compared with non-users (p<0.05). Pocket depths of 5-6 mm were found in more than half of the sample. Cocaine users had the highest percentage (80%) of pocket depths that ranged from 5-6 mm. CONCLUSION Illicit drug use, especially heroin and cocaine, is associated with more severe forms of periodontitis.