Oral Bacteria linked
to Stillbirth
by Case Western Reserve University School of Dental Medicine
CLEVELAND, OH, USA: Researchers at the Department of Periodontics at Case Western
Reserve University School of Dental Medicine reported the first documented link between
a mother with pregnancy-associated gum
disease to the death of her fetus. The studies findings will be
discussed in the February issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology.
Approximately 75 per cent of pregnant women experience gum bleeding
due to the hormonal changes during pregnancy. “There is an old wives’ tale that
you lose a tooth for each baby, and this is due to the underlying changes during
pregnancy,” said Yiping Han, lead researcher of the study. “But if there is another
underlying condition in the background, then you may lose more than a tooth but
a baby.”
Due to pregnancy-associated gingivitis,
Fusobacterium nucleatum, a bacteria commonly found in the mouth, entered the blood
and worked its way to the placenta. Han was able to match the bacterium found in
the mother’s mouth with the bacterium in the baby’s infected lungs and stomach.
Normally a mother’s immune system takes care of the bacteria in the blood before
it reaches the placenta. In this case, the mother had experienced an upper respiratory
infection and a low-grade fever just a few days before the stillbirth. The baby
died from a septic infection and inflammation caused by the bacteria.
The study underlines the growing importance of good
oral health care. In addition to this direct link from the mother to her
baby, oral bacteria have been associated with heart disease, diabetes and arthritis.
Source: www.dental-tribune.com
Edited by Claudia Salwiczek, DTI
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