[TalkHealth] [TalkNEWS] Fw: oral infections

[Guest guest]

oral infections

Just thought we would pass along this wonderful web site regarding the role

of oral infections in systemic disease from the American Academy of

Periodontology of all places. The site discusses the contribution of

bacteria involved in periodontal disease with the development of heart

disease, stroke, pre-term, low birth weight

infants, diabetes, respiratory diseases, and osteoporosis

(see http://www.perio.org/consumer/mbc.top2.htm).

One has to ask, if the bacteria involved in periodontal disease can

contribute to all these systemic diseases, what about the bacteria residing

in the dentinal tubules of avital, endodontically treated (root canal)

teeth. As Dr. Walter Loesche and colleagues so eloquently pointed out,

most, if not all, periodontally diseased teeth harbor bacteria within the

dentinal tubules and these bacteria constitute a " pathogenic reservoir "

form which reinfection of the periodontal pocket can occur (see references

below). If vital, but periodontally diseased teeth can harbor such

pathogens, what about dead root canal teeth. Surely, any dead tissue

allowed to remain in an environment such as the mouth, with its favorable

conditions for bacterial growth, is bound to become infected with bacteria

regardless of how it is embalmed.

Bacterial invasion in root cementum and radicular dentin of periodontally

diseased teeth in humans. A reservoir of periodontopathic bacteria.

Adriaens PA, De Boever JA, Loesche WJ. J Periodontol 1988 Apr;59(4):222-30.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov:80/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve & db=PubMed & list

_uids=3164373 & dopt=Abstract

Ultrastructural observations on bacterial invasion in cementum and

radicular dentin of periodontally diseased human teeth. Adriaens PA,

CA, De Boever JA, Loesche WJJ Periodontol 1988 Aug;59(8):493-503.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov:80/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve & db=PubMed & list

_uids=3171862 & dopt=Abstract

For an excellent illustration of bacteria residing within dentinal tubules,

see " The pathological periodontal pocket " from the School of Dentistry,

University of Copenhagan, Denmark, see

http://www.odont.ku.dk/basic.periodontology/pathpocket.htm.

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Wayne Obie

CFMR

http://www.talkinternational.com