Periodontitis is a microbially driven, host-mediated disease that leads to loss of
periodontal attachment and resorption of bone. It is associated with the elevation
of systemic inflammatory markers and with the presence of systemic comorbidities.
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by severe acute
respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Although the majority of patients
have mild symptoms, others experience important complications that can lead to death.
After the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, several investigations demonstrating the
possible relationship between periodontitis and COVID-19 have been reported. In addition,
both periodontal disease and COVID-19 seem to provoke and/or impair several cardiometabolic
complications such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome,
dyslipidemia, insulin resistance, obesity, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and
neurological and neuropsychiatric complications. Therefore, due to the increasing
number of investigations focusing on the periodontitis-COVID-19 relationship and considering
the severe complications that such an association might cause, this review aims to
summarize all existing emerging evidence regarding the link between the periodontitis-COVID-19
axis and consequent cardiometabolic impairments.
