The following is a summary of “Association between dental caries and steroid-sensitive nephrotic syndrome in children,” published in the October 2023 issue of Nephrology by Gu et al.

Researchers started a retrospective study to evaluate the association between steroid-sensitive nephrotic syndrome (SSNS) and dental caries in children, investigating the potential role of infection in pathogenesis and relapse.

They conducted a cohort study from January 2021 to June 2022, involving 145 children with SSNS in the baseline analysis and 105 in the follow-up analysis. The follow-up extended over one year, with the primary study goals being the relapse-free period and frequently relapsing nephrotic syndrome (FRNS). Secondary purposes included tracking relapse counts, triggers, and medication use.

The results revealed a median age of 5.5 years, a caries rate of 60.7%, a mean DMFT/dmft of 3.86, and a caries filling rate of 1.6%. The caries group had a lower proportion of high household income and parental education but no other significant baseline differences. The caries group exhibited a shorter relapse-free period and a lower 1-year cumulative relapse-free survival rate (HR = 1.90, 95% CI 1.17–3.09, P=0.009). Univariate regression analysis indicated an association between caries and FRNS (OR = 2.714, 95% CI 1.021–7.219, P=0.045), although this correlation did not persist in the multivariate analysis. Seven cases of caries-induced pulpal periapical inflammation triggered SSNS relapses. The caries group had more infection triggers and concurrent medication usage.

They concluded that there is a potential association between dental caries and relapse of SSNS, but more research is needed.

Source: link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00467-023-06167-7