A genetic and epidemiologic study of periodontal disease in Hawaii

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Abstract
Using a modification of the Ramfjord procedure, 939 individuals aged 14 years or above of six racial groups were examined for periodontal disease to study the effects of genetic and epidemiologic factors with special emphasis on inbreeding and race. Other factors studied included sex, age, years of education, frequency of toothbrushing, smoking, tooth malalignment, and medical history.Among six racial groups, two distinct clusters were discernible even when relevant concomitant variables including years of education and oral hygiene practice were adjusted for. Caucasians, Japanese, and ≪Others≫ had clearly higher levels of periodontal health status than Hawaiians or part‐Hawaiians, Samoans, and Filipinos. The difference in Samoans and Filipinos may be explained in part by cultural and socioeconomic factors associated with their recent immigration to Hawaii. Inbreeding was not related to any indicator of periodontal disease showing inconsistency with the hypothesis of significant role of recessive genes in the etiology of the disease.Smoking was found to have adverse effect on periodontal health status, whereas no clear‐cut association was noted with tooth malalignment. The principal component analysis on eight periodontal disease variables led to the extraction of two major factors, destructive periodontal disease and plaque accumulation.