SummaryThis project investigates the associations between women-specific hormonal factors, gynaecologic disorders, and oral health outcomes within the German National Cohort (NAKO). Using extensive baseline data from female participants, we will analyse how menstruation, menopausal status, hormone therapy, and conditions such as endometriosis, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and ovarian cancer relate to gingivitis, periodontitis, caries, and tooth loss. Bidirectional analyses will additionally examine whether chronic oral inflammatory conditions are associated with selected women’s health outcomes, including ovarian cancer and PCOS. The project uses classical regression models and complementary machine-learning approaches to explore linear and non-linear associations, adjust for key confounders, and identify data-driven interaction patterns. Where available, systemic inflammatory markers and selected blood-based proteins will be incorporated in exploratory analyses to investigate potential biological pathways linking hormonal, gynaecologic, and oral inflammatory conditions. Findings will contribute to an improved understanding of hormonal and systemic influences on oral health and may inform gender-specific prevention strategies.

Keywords Menstruation PCOS endometriosis periodontitis

InstitutionsPoliklinik für Zahnerhaltung und Parodontologie, Universitätsklinikum Heidelberg, Universitätsmedizin Greifswald, LMU Klinikum, Universitätsklinikum Hamburg-Eppendorf, Universitätsklinikum Schleswig-Holstein, Campus Kiel, Universitätsmedizin Charité, Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany; 2) Zahn- und Prophylaxe Centre Priv.-Doz. Dr. Nicole Pischon, Berlin Schönefeld, Germany; 3) Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), Molecular Epidemiology Research Group, Berlin, Germany, Universitätsklinikum des Saarlandes, Universitäsmedizin Greifswald, Max-Delbrück-Centrum für Molekulare Medizin (MDC)