Total Ferric Reducing Ability of Plasma as an independent caries risk marker in pregnant women with diabetes.

Pregnancy and diabetes increase the risk of developing pathologies in the oral cavity. Saliva biomarkers can be used as diagnostic markers in the monitoring of dental diseases. The study aimed to evaluate hard dental tissue health in pregnant women with two forms of diabetes and salivary antioxidant activity to identify optimal non-invasive caries risk factors. The study involved 104 pregnant women: 35 patients with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), 30 patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D), and 39 pregnant patients without diabetes mellitus (control group). Physical examination included caries assessment using the dental DMFT index, caries frequency, SiC index, and dental treatment index. Oral hygiene was also assessed using the Approximal Plaque Index (API). The study of unstimulated saliva measured the total Ferric Reducing Ability of Plasma (FRAP), as well as the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione reductase (GR), and glutathione peroxidase (GPX). In the analyzed patient population, caries frequency totalled 100%, with active tooth decay observed in 72.12% of patients, whereas caries intensity was similar in the studied groups. In all groups, oral hygiene (API) was average. In T1D group, higher values of the API index (p = 0.001) were observed vs. the control group. Antioxidant activity was similar in the study groups. The independent determinants of caries occurrence included API (p = 0.002) and FRAP concentration (p = 0.02). The health of dental hard tissues in the examined patients was unsatisfactory and similar in the studied groups. FRAP concentration and oral hygiene (API) functioned as determinants of caries.