Gum disease: causes, symptoms, and treatment options

Gum Disease Can Lead to Stillbirth

The idea that being a dental hygienist can help save lives seems exaggerated, but according to a recent article in Cosmos Magazine, it is a very real possibility. Merolla (2010) reports that researchers have recently found conclusive evidence that gum disease can lead to stillbirth. While there had previously been evidence of this connection in mice, the correlation between gum diseases and stillborn births was not made conclusive in humans until a recent case study analyzed at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio.

The discovery was made when a woman in California who had a stillborn baby underwent DNA testing. It turned out that the bacteria responsible the stillbirth, Fuscobacterium nucleatum, can only originate in the mouth. The researchers found that the mother "had experienced excessive gum bleeding, a symptom of pregnancy-associated gingivitis. This gum bleeding, which affects about 75% of pregnant women, most likely allowed the oral bacteria to enter the mother's bloodstream" (p. 1). Normally, the human immune system would be able to fight off the bacteria, but because this woman's immune system was already weak due to another illness, the bacteria survived and resulted in the unfortunate stillbirth.

This article really hit home for me because as an aspiring dental hygienist I have always understood the importance of dental health, but realizing that it can actually save lives was very eye-opening. Any part I can play at helping people live fuller, healthier lives I am happy to take on.

Although I know the magazine probably had only limited space for the article, there is a lot more information I would have liked to have had. For example, Why did the researchers choose this particular woman to do their research on? and, Is it possible that her age and other health problems could have actually been the causal factor for the stillbirth. I know they found that the bacteria can only come from the mouth, but I just wonder if they are positive that was what caused the baby's death.

I would also be interested to find out why this positive correlation between gum disease and stillbirth has only been found up until now in animals. Have they just never tested humans for this before? Or have they tested them before and found not correlation until now. If the latter is the case, then why is this particular patient's outcome more viable than other tests that had the opposite results?

I am the type of person who always wants to know the how's, why's where's and when's, so I may be expecting too much from one small article. However I cannot help but wonder if some of the claims in the article are a bit sensationalized in the sense that they are attempting to make the study sound like a groundbreaking discovery when in fact, it is just one of many outcomes of various research and tests that have been conducted.