Gum Disease-Preterm Birth Link Questioned

Ivanhoe Newswire
Thursday, November 2, 2006; 12:00 AM

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Treating a pregnant women's gum disease doesn't appear to reduce her risk of having a premature baby, report researchers who conducted a large government study.

The finding questions the long held theory that bacteria produced by periodontal disease may somehow travel to the womb and induce premature labor and birth.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) study was conducted among about 800 women between 13 and 17 weeks pregnant. About half underwent periodontal treatment during their pregnancies, while the other half put the treatment on hold until after they gave birth. Researchers noted no difference in preterm births between the two groups.

The study did reveal periodontal treatment during pregnancy is safe, however, with no adverse events associated with the treatment among women who had it while pregnant. This finding is important, report the investigators, because dentists are generally hesitant to perform procedures on pregnant women for fear they may harm the developing fetus.

The researchers note the jury will remain out on the link between periodontal disease and preterm birth, at least for a while. A companion study is ongoing to continue to investigate the possible association.

"It's just good science to conduct more than one large clinical trial on any public health question," reports Jane Atkinson, D.D.S., program director of the NIH's National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research Clinical Trials Program. "If periodontal disease plays any role in preterm birth, we want to cast a wide enough investigational net to determine which women are at risk."

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SOURCE: The New England Journal of Medicine, published online Nov. 1, 2006