Assessment of Associations Between Sociodemographic and Analysis of Risk Factors for Oral Infectious Pathology in Patients Scheduled for Total Hip and Knee Arthroplasty

The aim of this study was to evaluate the factors associated with the occurrence of oral infection sources in patients scheduled for total hip or knee arthroplasty, with the purpose of establishing standardized preoperative dental triage criteria. <b>Materials and Methods:</b> A retrospective research was conducted on a study group of 89 patients diagnosed with hip osteoarthritis and knee osteoarthritis at the Clinical Rehabilitation Hospital (Iasi, Romania). Patients were divided according to the status of their oral cavity: study group (<i>n</i> = 51)-patients with diagnosed oral infection sites (oral foci of infection); control group (<i>n</i> = 38)-patients without oral foci of infection. The statistical analysis included a univariate stage followed by a multivariate binary logistic regression to identify demographic and clinical factors associated with the presence of oral foci of infection. <b>Results:</b> The strongest predictor of the presence of oral foci of infection was and Oral Hygiene Index (OHI) scorer of 2, which increased the risk 14.583-fold, followed by being aged between 50 and 65 years (OR = 4.038), tooth brushing once a day or less (OR = 3.488), and male sex (OR = 3.433). An OHI score of 2 raises the probability of oral infectious pathology to 30.3%, which increases to 85.1% when combined with being aged between 50 and 65 years. <b>Conclusions:</b> The risk factors for the presence or oral foci of infection in patients scheduled for total knee or hip arthroplasty support the inclusion of the preoperative assessment and management of these factors in order to reduce the risk of the postoperative periprosthetic joint infections.