Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Jun 6:2022:5195278.
doi: 10.1155/2022/5195278. eCollection 2022.

Oral Hygiene Practices and Awareness of Pregnant Women about the Effects of Periodontal Disease on Pregnancy Outcomes

Noora Mohammed Eissa Bushehab  1 , Jayadevan Sreedharan  1 , Sesha Reddy  1 , Jovita D'souza  1 , Hossam Abdelmagyd  1
Affiliations

Oral Hygiene Practices and Awareness of Pregnant Women about the Effects of Periodontal Disease on Pregnancy Outcomes

Noora Mohammed Eissa Bushehab et al. Int J Dent. .

Abstract

Objectives: Adverse pregnancy outcomes, such as preterm low birth weight (PTLBW), is a severe public health issue that needs to be dealt with by educating the general female population, dental practitioners, and gynecologist. One of the major contributing factors is periodontal disease, which accounts for about 18.2% of all PTLBW cases worldwide, and prevention of the same could reduce the occurrence of PTLBW babies. This study aimed to assess the oral hygiene practices and awareness of pregnant women about the effect of periodontal disease on pregnancy outcomes.

Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted where 400 pregnant women after consent were requested to complete an anonymous, self-administered, structured questionnaire with twenty-one close-ended questions.

Results: Only 5% of participants in this study reported that gum diseases during pregnancy lead to preterm labor or low birth weight babies. About 70.7% of pregnant women mentioned that they did not use any interdental cleaning aids, and 54.5% did not use mouthwashes.

Conclusion: Tooth brushing practices among pregnant women were good; however, there was an overall lack in the use of adjunctive aids. The study highlighted a deficiency in the awareness of pregnant women regarding the association between periodontal disease and adverse pregnancy outcomes.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Awareness regarding gum disease as a risk factor for preterm labor.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Awareness about the relationship between periodontal disease and pregnancy outcomes.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Fi C., Wo W. Periodontal disease and systemic diseases: an overview on recent progresses. Journal of Biological Regulators and Homeostatic Agents . 2021;35:1–9. - PubMed
    1. Guo Z., Gu C., Li S., et al. Periodontal disease and the risk of prostate cancer: a meta-analysis of cohort studies. International Braz J Urol . 2021;47(6):1120–1130. doi: 10.1590/s1677-5538.ibju.2020.0333. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Kim W. J., Soh Y., Heo S. M. Recent advances of therapeutic targets for the treatment of periodontal disease. Biomolecules and Therapeutics . 2021;29(3):263–267. doi: 10.4062/biomolther.2021.001. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Paul O., Arora P., Mayer M., Chatterjee S. Inflammation in periodontal disease: possible link to vascular disease. Frontiers in Physiology . 2021;11 doi: 10.3389/fphys.2020.609614.609614 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Hajishengallis G., Lamont R. J. Polymicrobial communities in periodontal disease: their quasi-organismal nature and dialogue with the host. Periodontol . 2000;86 - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources