Aspirin, one of the most common drugs, is preventive for several chronic diseases with inflammatory etiologies. Although periodontitis is a common inflammatory oral disease, the effects of aspirin on periodontitis are currently unknown. Objectives: To evaluate the periodontal status of human subjects on peroral aspirin therapy. Methods: The study population included 4,888 subjects participating in the Dental Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (DARIC) Study and who self-reported regular dental visits (≥1/year). Subjects were interviewed regarding ongoing medications, dose and duration. Complete periodontal exams were performed, which included measurement of gingival (GI) and plaque indices (PI), percent bleeding on probing (%BOP), pocket depth (PD) and clinical attachment level (CAL). In addition, gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) was collected and analyzed using ELIZA for prostaglandin E2 (PGE2). Data were tested using General Linear Model procedures. Results: 1,457 subjects admitted to regular peroral aspirin use (695 <3years and 762 ≥3years) with the majority (72.8%) taking 325mg qd. 3,431 non-aspirin users were identified as controls. Overall, regular aspirin users were more likely to be older, male, smoke and exhibit diabetes (p<0.05). Significant inter-group differences were also detected for CAL (p=0.008) and %BOP (p=0.005). For non-aspirin controls, CAL was 1.79mm. For regular aspirin users <3years and ≥3years, CAL means were 1.76 and 1.68mm respectively. When pair-wise comparisons were performed, the difference in CAL between non-aspirin controls and the aspirin group ≥3 years was statistically significant (p=0.002). Similarly, aspirin users ≥3years exhibited improved %BOP (22.0%) versus non-aspirin controls (24.4%). Trends for improvements in PD, extent GI scores (% GI≥1) and GCF PGE2 were also noted for aspirin users ≥3years relative to controls. Conclusions: These preliminary data indicate that periodontal status as measured with probing parameters is significantly improved among regular, long-term aspirin users as compared to non-aspirin subjects. (Supported by NIDCR R01 DE 11551)

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