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ALBANY, N.Y., USA: New research has provided further evidence that diabetes is closely associated with dental conditions such as edentulism.

In a recently published study, scientists observed that patients with diabetes were significantly more likely to suffer from edentulism than adults without diabetes were.

In the study, researchers from the New York State Department of Health analyzed oral examination and self-reported diabetes data from 2,508 people aged 50 and older.

By calculating the prevalence of edentulism and the number of missing teeth among dentate patients, the researchers were able to establish a link between diabetes and tooth loss in the survey population.

Among others, they found that 28 percent of participants diagnosed with diabetes and 14 percent without diabetes were edentulous.

In addition, they observed that those with diabetes had a higher number of missing teeth.

Overall, the researchers estimated that 1 in every 5 cases of edentulism in the U.S. is linked to diabetes.

Therefore, they emphasized that health care professionals need to recognize the risk of tooth loss and its effect on the quality of life among people with diabetes.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's 2011 National Diabetes Fact Sheet, diabetes affects 25.8 million people, i.e., 8.3 percent of the U.S. population.

It is the seventh leading cause of death in the U.S.

Data for the study was obtained from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, a program designed to assess the health and nutritional status of adults and children in the U.S., which is concerned with various diseases, medical conditions, and health indicators, including diabetes, cardiovascular disease and obesity.

The survey examines a nationally representative sample of about 5,000 persons each year.