Are you facing Heart Arrhythmia and you are not able to find any underlying cause for why it is happening? Gum problem or Gum Infection or Periodontitis has been linked to Heart Arrhythmia or Irregular or Abnormal Heart beat or Rhythm. According to a study published in JACC: Clinical Electrophysiology Heart Arrhythmia has been linked to Periodontal Disease. It has been found that patients with Cardiac disease especially with Fibrosis of an appendage of the left atrium of heart have been seen to have Periodontitis, giving a strong indication of having a link between Fibrosis and bad Gum health.
Patients who had their Left atrial appendages removed surgically were checked for severity of gum disease and the severity of Atrial Fibrosis. It was found that the more severe the Gum Disease or Periodontitis the worse the Fibrosis was – this in turn gave an indication that the worse the Disease in Gums the more severe Atrial Fibrosis was in the tested patients.
First author Shunsuke Miyauchi, said, “Periodontitis is associated with a long-standing inflammation, and inflammation plays a key role in atrial fibrosis progression and atrial fibrillation pathogenesis,” he is the assistant professor in Hiroshima University’s Health Service Center. He added “We hypothesized that periodontitis exacerbated atrial fibrosis. This histological study of left atrial appendages aimed to clarify the relationship between clinical periodontitis status and degree of atrial fibrosis.”
Corresponding author Yukiko Nakano, professor of cardiovascular medicine in Hiroshima University’s Graduate School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, said, “This study provides basic evidence that periodontitis can aggravate atrial fibrosis and can be novel modifiable risk factor for atrial fibrillation.”
This does not mean that Periodontitis is the only condition leading to increase in severity of Atrial Fibrosis but it acts as an aggravator to the disease along with other factors such as high weight, bad food habits, less activity, tobacco and alcohol use. Nakano said, “One of our goals is to confirm that periodontitis is a modifiable risk factor for atrial fibrillation and to promote dental specialists participation in comprehensive atrial fibrillation management. Periodontitis is an easy modifiable target with lower cost among known atrial fibrillation risk factors. Thus, the achievement of this study series may bring benefits for many people worldwide.”
As Dental professionals it is our duty to put emphasis on the importance of having good Dental health in patients suffering with Heart conditions as we can see the relationship between bad Oral health and an increase in severity of Heart conditions such as Arrhythmia and Atrial Fibrosis.
References:
- https://www.hiroshima-u.ac.jp/en/news/75127 – Journal: JACC: Clinical Electrophysiology
Title: Relationship Between Periodontitis and Atrial Fibrosis in Atrial Fibrillation: Histological Evaluation of Left Atrial Appendages
