Introduction: Statins have been described as the principal and most effective class of drugs to reduce serum cholesterol levels and have been shown to significantly reduce cardiovascular events and mortality in patients with or without coronary artery disease. Pleiotropic effects of statins include anti-inflammatory and immune modulation properties. These effects may have an impact on the periodontal status.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the correlation between statin use and clinical periodontal status in patients with chronic periodontitis.

Materials and methods: A test group of 68 statin users was compared to a control group of 69 non-users. Probing depths (PD), Bleeding on Probing (BOP), smoking and diabetes status was investigated. The periodontal status between the two groups was compared using the Periodontal Inflammatory Burden Index (PIBI). The PIBI was calculated and used to compare PD, BOP, smoking and diabetes between the test and control groups. The primary outcome was the PIBI between both groups.

Results: Smokers and diabetics represented a larger percentage of the statin users compared to non-users. Both smoking and diabetes had a negative effect on the periodontal condition (smokers had a significantly worse periodontal condition). Bleeding on probing and statin use showed a trend of near significance demonstrating a better periodontal condition in the statin users.

Conclusion: Our findings support the possibility that the use of oral statins may have a positive impact on periodontal disease severity and approached significance that may have been achieved with a larger sample size.