Morphological study of subepithelial connective tissue and capillaries in the palatal gingiva of the maxillary first molar in obese type 2 diabetes mellitus model rats

抄録

Although obesity is a lifestyle-related disease and a major risk factor for type 2 diabetes mellitus, the effects of obese type 2 diabetes mellitus (ODM) on oral health have not been fully elucidated. We compared the subepithelial connective tissue and capillary network of the palatal gingiva of the maxillary first molar in ODM model rats and normal rats. The subepithelial connective tissue of the two groups differed substantially. In particular, the cross-sectional area of the subepithelial connective tissue, the cross-sectional area and height of the connective tissue papillae, and the capillary diameter were significantly lower in the ODM rats compared with the normal animals (p<0.01). In conclusion, hyperglycemia in ODM rats is associated with atrophic changes, evidenced by reduced cross-sectional area of the subepithelial connective tissue, as well as reduced cross-sectional area and height of the subepithelial connective tissue papillae. Furthermore, it causes diabetic microangiopathy in the capillary network of the palatal gingiva of the maxillary first molar in the ODM rats. (J Osaka Dent Univ 2022; 56: 151-160)