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Association between dental scaling and the lower risk of oral cancer: A population-based nested case-control study

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Background/purpose: Oral cancer is a common malignancy that associates with oral inflammatory reactions. Dental scaling can effectively reduce periodontal inflammation to facilitate oral health. This may contribute to a less conducive environment for oral cancer initiation and progression. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between dental scaling and oral cancer. Materials and methods: A retrospective nested case-control study was conducted by using Taiwanese Longitudinal Health Insurance Database. This study captured patients with oral cancer identified from the cancer registry. Each oral cancer patient was matched with eight non-oral cancer controls based on age and sex. Conditional logistic regression was use to assess the association between the last dental scaling prior to the index date and oral cancer occurrence. Results: < 0.001). Oral cancer patients with dental scaling prior to the index date presented a lower chance toward advanced oral cancer stage than those oral cancer patients without any dental scaling. Conclusion: Taken together, this nationwide population-based study indicated that dental scaling exhibited a significantly lower risk of oral cancer in Taiwanese population.

Source: Journal of Dental Sciences

DOI: 10.1016/j.jds.2025.03.037