Bad teeth and the risk of heart attack
Heart attack is provoked by oral bacteria
Researchers from the University of Tampere have shown for the first time that blood clots of patients who have suffered a myocardial infarction contain DNA of pathogens from the oral cavity in large quantities. This study is part of a research project at the University of Tampere, where scientists have been studying the effect of bacterial infection on the development of cardiovascular diseases for ten years.
The research team has previously shown that the same odontogenic (associated with oral infections) bacteria are present in blood clot aspirates of suddenly deceased patients and arterial blood of patients with myocardial infarction and rupture of cerebral aneurysms, as well as in blood clot aspirates of patients with venous thrombosis of the lower extremities.
This time, the researchers used PCR diagnostics to analyze blood clots that were removed from 75 patients with a heart attack as part of emergency therapy. Diagnostics showed that 79% of the aspirates contained bacterial DNA from the oral cavity.
The presence of microbes of the genus Streptococcus, mainly of the mitis group, was detected in 84% of the samples. The average relative amount of streptococcal DNA was 10 times higher compared to control blood samples from the same patients.
In the oral cavity, these streptococci are relatively harmless, but when they enter the bloodstream, they can cause, among other things, infections of the heart valves. Streptococcus bacteria are able to bind directly to various platelet receptors, making the patient more prone to blood clots.
Studies show that oral health and good hygiene are much more important for health than previously thought, and that untreated infections of teeth and gums can lead to serious health damage or even death.
Article by Olli et al. Oral Bacterial Signatures in Cerebral Thrombi of Patients With Acute Ischemic Stroke Treated With Thrombectomy
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