Mom's gum disease and risk of preterm birth

Pregnant women with periodontal (gum) disease are at increased risk for delivering their infants prematurely. Researchers from the Dental School in Toulouse, France, analysed 17 studies involving 7,151 women, 1,056 of who delivered their infants preterm or at a low birth weight. It was found that mother's gum disease increases the risk of early birth or having a low birth weight infant nearly threefold. For preterm birth alone, periodontal disease increased risk 3 fold, while it more than quadrupled the risk of having a low birth weight infant. While the current study supports a periodontal disease-prematurity link, the strength of the association should be interpreted with care, given that the higher quality studies showed a weaker link. It remains unclear how periodontal disease might contribute to preterm or low birth weight delivery. While the analysis is comprehensive and well-executed, it cannot prove that gum disease causes preterm birth. Studies investigating whether treating periodontal disease in pregnant women prevents preterm delivery have yielded conflicting results. Therefore, dental interventions cannot be recommended as preventive therapy for preterm birth based on the research currently available. Good oral hygiene will lead to healthier gums and teeth, however.