Oral and Dental Diseases

How your oral health may affect your heart

In people with a cardiovascular weakness, an untreated oral infection can lead to severe or fatal complications. Bacteria from the mouth can spread through the bloodstream an cause endocarditis, an infection of the inner lining of the heart (endocardium). Endocarditis is a rare but very serious disease. It should be treated with antibiotics in the hospital and could require emergency surgery because the heart valves may be destroyed by bacteria.

In fact, bacteria from the mouth are much more harmful than one might think. They can cause not only gingivitis but also arterial inflammation and blood clots. When these germs enter the bloodstream, the immune system identifies them as intruders and this results in local inflammation of the artery walls. This inflammation can serve as a basis for the development atherosclerosis, a disease in which plaque builds up inside your arteries. This pathology may cause a heart attack, a stroke or a ruptured aneurysm.