MSNBC.com recently posted an informative anaerobic microbiology article regarding a study done at Case Western University that linked gum disease to an infants death.

Expectant mothers have long been warned that gum disease can cause a baby to be born prematurely or too small. But for the first time scientists have linked bacteria from a mother’s gums to an infection in a baby that was full-term but stillborn, according to the study which was published Thursday in Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Scientists from Case Western University made the discovery after a 35-year-old California woman contacted them to help investigate the death of her baby. Earlier studies by the same researchers showed that an oral bacteria called Fusobacterium nucleatum could spread from the bloodstream to the placenta in mice. The woman wanted to know if it was possible in humans.

Women have been warned that gum disease could lead to a baby being born prematurely, or too small, but up until this point, Doctors had yet to definitively link gum disease to a single case of infant death.

Bacteria from the mouth can easily get into the bloodstream once a woman’s gums are bleeding, explains the study’s lead author Yiping Han, an associate professor of periodontics and pathology at Case Western University. Generally, this type of bacteria can be easily combated by the immune system of the mom-to-be, whether mouse or human. But because of special conditions that exist in the womb, the fetus can be more susceptible, Han suspects.

While this strengthens the argument that women who are pregnant and are experiencing gum-related problems should immediately get themselves checked out by a dentist, Dr. Richard H. Beigi states that women shouldn’t be overly alarmed by this single case.

“This is just one case,” he explained. “Most pregnant women have bleeding gums and most don’t have dead babies. This can happen, but it’s rare. And this finding doesn’t mean that it’s increasing.”

Source: MSNBC.com