Clinical implications of dysregulated non-coding RNA expression in periodontitis: evidence synthesis from a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) regulate inflammatory responses and bone resorption in periodontitis. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the diagnostic value of ncRNA in periodontitis. Studies were selected from PubMed, EMBASE, and Web of Science. Heterogeneity was assessed using the Q test and I2 statistic. Diagnostic value was determined by pooled sensitivity, specificity, and area under the curve (AUC) of the summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC). Subgroup analysis was performed to explore heterogeneity sources. Thirteen articles (38 tests, 820 controls, 948 cases) were included. The overall sensitivity of ncRNAs for diagnosing periodontitis was 0.79 (95% CI: 0.73-0.84), specificity was 0.83 (95% CI: 0.78-0.86), and AUC was 0.88 (95% CI: 0.85-0.90), indicating good diagnostic performance. The positive likelihood ratio was 4.53 (95% CI: 3.64-5.65), and the negative likelihood ratio was 0.26 (95% CI: 0.20-0.33), indicating limited clinical applicability of the pooled results. The diagnostic score was 2.88 (95% CI: 2.50-3.26), and the DOR was 17.75 (95% CI: 12.12-26.00), suggesting significant diagnostic accuracy for dysregulated ncRNAs in periodontitis. Dysregulated ncRNAs can distinguish periodontitis from healthy controls, highlighting their potential as diagnostic biomarkers.