Periodontitis and high phosphate intake alone or in combination adversely affect the kidney

Our study examined the impact of periodontitis and a 0.9% high phosphate (HP) diet, individually and together, on periodontal tissue and kidney. We divided rats into 4 groups: normal diet, HP diet, periodontitis with a normal diet, and periodontitis with an HP diet, and assessed various periodontal and renal parameters. Although we did not observe any effects of HP intake on periodontal tissue, we found that HP intake worsened kidney health by increasing fibrosis, while periodontitis did so by increasing macrophage infiltration. Combined, these conditions worsen kidney health more than when each condition exists alone, causing more tubular basophilia, fibrosis, and macrophage infiltration. However, these negative effects were reversed with TNF-α inhibition. These findings indicate that the combination of periodontitis and HP intake exacerbates renal damage, which can be ameliorated by TNF-α inhibition.