Dirty Teeth Can Kill You, U.S. Study Shows

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Dirty Teeth Can Kill You, U.S. Study Shows

 

Tue Nov 30, 2:13 PM ET

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Germs found in dental plaque can make their way

into the lungs and cause potentially fatal pneumonia in elderly nursing

home patients, U.S. researchers reported on Tuesday.

 

Though the study was small, the researchers said they found clear

evidence in eight patients who developed pneumonia while in the hospital

that had originated from their own dental plaque.

 

" This is the first study to establish unequivocally a link between

dental hygiene and respiratory infection, " said Dr. Ali El-Solh of the

University at Buffalo in New York, who led the study. Writing in the

latest issue of the journal Chest, El-Solh and colleagues said they

tested 49 nursing home residents who were admitted to a nearby hospital

with a high risk of pneumonia. They made molecular fingerprints of the

bacteria found in each patient's mouth before he or she developed

pneumonia.

 

Of the 49 patients, 28 had germs known to cause respiratory disease in

their dental plaque samples and 21 did not. The patients were watched

closely for pneumonia. The researchers said 14 eventually developed

pneumonia and 10 of them had started out with respiratory

disease-causing germs in their teeth.

 

Tests of germs from the lungs showed the DNA matched the DNA of plaque

germs in eight of the patients -- more than half. " These findings

indicate that dental plaque is a reservoir of respiratory pathogens that

can cause pneumonia in hospitalized institutionalized elders, " said

El-Solh.

Nursing homes need to help patients maintain clean teeth and dentures,

he added.