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
. 2024 May 27:18:1027-1038.
doi: 10.2147/PPA.S456721. eCollection 2024.

Assessment of Oral Health Status and Pregnancy Outcomes Among Women in Saudi Arabia

Ghena Abdullah AlHumaid  1 , Turki Alshehri  1 , Razan Mohammed Alwalmani  1 , Reema Mohammed Alsubaie  2 , Abdulsalam Dhafer Alshehri  3 , Eman Aljoghaiman  4 , Balgis Gaffar  4
Affiliations

Assessment of Oral Health Status and Pregnancy Outcomes Among Women in Saudi Arabia

Ghena Abdullah AlHumaid et al. Patient Prefer Adherence. .

Abstract

Purpose: Pregnant women witness many changes in the body as well as in the oral cavity with many factors influencing these changes. This study evaluated the relationship between oral health status, perceptions, and pregnancy outcomes.

Methods: A cross sectional study design was implemented to recruit a convenience sample of women attending Obstetrics and gynecology department in public hospitals in East and capital city of Saudi Arabia. To collect data, a validated self-administered questionnaire in English and Arabic was used. The questionnaire covered background information, perceived oral health status, and dental visits.

Results: About 64.4% of the 481 women recruited had dental problems, 49.7% reported deterioration in their oral health during pregnancy, and 17.5% reported adverse pregnancy outcomes. Only 40.7% of pregnant women rated their oral health as good, and only 22% visited a dentist during their pregnancy. Dentists were the most common source of oral health information (44.1%), followed by social media (38.9%). Dental problems during pregnancy were significantly associated with adverse outcomes (P=0.007). Oral health perceptions of pregnant women, not visiting the dentist during pregnancy, and gingival problems were also significantly associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes (P=0.001). Those with fair to poor oral health were twice as likely to experience adverse pregnancy outcome. Those who intended to visit the dentist during their pregnancy but did not do so, as well as those who did not visit the dentist at all were 12 and 9 times more likely to experience adverse pregnancy outcomes respectively.

Conclusion: Dental complaints during pregnancy, oral health perceptions, and a lack of dental visits were all linked to increased likelihood of adverse pregnancy outcomes. There is a need for interprofessional collaboration to dispel myths and encourage oral health care and regular dental visits during pregnancy.

Keywords: adverse pregnancy outcomes; low birth weight; oral health; pregnant women; preterm.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest in this work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Number of women who noticed deterioration in their oral health during pregnancy.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Source of oral health information among study participants.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Silva de Araujo Figueiredo C, Gonçalves Carvalho Rosalem C, Costa Cantanhede AL, et al. Systemic alterations and their oral manifestations in pregnant women. J Obstet Gynaecol Res. 2017;43(1):16–22. doi:10.1111/jog.13150 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Zi MY, Longo PL, Bueno-Silva B, et al. Mechanisms involved in the association between periodontitis and complications in pregnancy. Front Public Health. 2015;2:290. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2014.00290 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Gonzalez-Jaranay M, Téllez L, Roa-López A, et al. Periodontal status during pregnancy and postpartum. PLoS One. 2017;12(5):e0178234. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0178234 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Martínez-Pabón MC, Martínez Delgado CM, López-Palacio AM, et al. Características fisicoquímicas y microbiológicas de la saliva durante y después del embarazo [The physicochemical and microbiological characteristics of saliva during and after pregnancy]. Rev Salud Publica. 2014;16(1):128–138. doi:10.15446/rsap.v16n1.35767 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Saadaoui M, Singh P, Al Khodor S. Oral microbiome and pregnancy: a bidirectional relationship. J Reprod Immunol. 2021;145:103293. doi:10.1016/j.jri.2021.103293 - DOI - PubMed