The most common chief complaints among patients attending the periodontal clinic and their relationship with periodontal disease

Abbood, Hadeel Mohammed; Cherukara, George

doi:10.25130/tjds.14.1.12

	The most common chief complaints among patients attending the periodontal clinic and their relationship with periodontal disease
Tikrit Journal for Dental Sciences
Volume 14, Issue 1, June 2026, Pages 121-128 PDF (339.5 K)
Document Type: Original Article
DOI: 10.25130/tjds.14.1.12
Authors
Hadeel Mohammed Abbood^* ¹; George Cherukara²
¹College of Dentistry, Tikrit University
²School of Dentistry, University of Dundee, UK
Abstract
Background: Periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory disease affecting the periodontium. Its impact on systemic health has been proved. Therefore, early detection of this disease is crucial. However, periodontitis is known to be a silent disease in early stages. Patients usually are unaware of their periodontal health status. Aims: This study aimed to identify the most common chief complaints of patients attending a periodontal clinic and compare these complaints to the clinical diagnosis of periodontitis and gingivitis. Methods: This cross-sectional study investigated dental records of patients attending a university periodontal clinic. Chief complaints of the patients were divided into groups including halitosis, bleeding gums, pain, and discomfort. These complaints were compared to the clinical periodontal condition of the patients. X2 test, regression, and decision tree analyses were performed. Results: A Total of 520 dental records were assessed. 202 (38.8%) of the patients attended for check-up with no complaints. Half of them had healthy periodontium. Of patients complaining of pain or discomfort, 65.5% had periodontitis (x2 p-value=0.001). Additionally, half of the patients who complained of bleeding gums were diagnosed with periodontitis, however, this was not statistically significant (x2 p-value=0.065). The decision tree analysis showed that young age (≤29 years) non-smoking patients with periodontal disease were more likely to complain of bleeding gums (15 out of 23 (65.2%)), Conclusion: This study showed that young patients with periodontal disease were complaining from pain and discomfort, and bleeding gums among non-smoking patients. This can help in increasing the awareness of periodontal disease among young population to seek professional care early to prevent periodontal destruction.
Keywords
Periodontitis; Gingivitis; Chief complaint; Bleeding gums; Gingival pain

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