Oral health in patients scheduled for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in the Orastem study.

Despite advances in transplant medicine, prevalence of complications after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) remains high. The impact of pre-HSCT oral health factors on the incidence and severity of complications post-HSCT is poorly understood. The aim of this prospective, observational study was to analyze oral health in patients planned for HSCT. Patients ≥18 years requiring HSCT were included from five sites between 2011-2018. General health, oral findings and patient-reported symptoms were registered in 272 patients. Oral symptoms around disease onset were reported by 43 patients (15.9%) and 153 patients (58.8%) reported oral complications during previous chemotherapy. One third of patients experienced oral symptoms at the oral examination before conditioning regimen and HSCT. In total, 124 (46.1%) patients had dental caries, 63 (29.0%) had ≥one tooth with deep periodontal pockets, 147 (75.0%) had ≥one tooth with bleeding on probing. Apical periodontitis was observed in almost 1/4 and partially impacted teeth in 17 (6.3%) patients. Oral mucosal lesions were observed in 84 patients (30.9%). A total of 45 (17.4%) of 259 patients had at least one acute issue to be managed prior to HSCT. In conclusion, oral symptoms and manifestations of oral disease were prevalent in patients planned for HSCT. The extent of oral and acute dental diseases calls for general oral screening of patients pre-HSCT.

Apical periodontitis as potential source of infection in patients with lymphoma treated with chemotherapy.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate signs of infection and infection-related complications of apical periodontitis (AP) in patients who underwent chemotherapy for lymphoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data were collected retrospectively from the dental and medical records of patients receiving chemotherapy for lymphoma. Based on the findings from a dental evaluation made in conjunction with chemotherapy, the patients were divided into two groups, patients with or without teeth with AP. RESULTS: Eighty-six of the 213 patients had one or more teeth with AP and received no planned dental treatment for this condition, while 127 patients had no AP-affected teeth. During chemotherapy, seven patients (8%) developed local symptoms related to teeth with AP, while no patients in the control group developed symptoms of AP. No significant differences were found with respect to the administration of antibiotics related to dental infection or hospital admission events due to fever or infection, between the group with AP and the group without AP. CONCLUSIONS: AP is a common finding and exacerbation seems more common in patients diagnosed with chronic AP than in patients without chronic AP. The presence of chronic AP in patients treated with chemotherapy for lymphoma is not linked to additional medical complications that require hospital admission owing to fever/infection. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Knowledge regarding infection-related complications of AP in patients with lymphoma treated with chemotherapy will guide clinical decision-making by identifying those patients who warrant treatment. This will allow dental interventions to be postponed until completion of chemotherapy, without serious medical complications. The results of this study serve as a basis for larger prospective studies.