STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Feb. 23 (UPI) -- Swedish researchers say they have found a link between coronary heart disease and oral health in women.
Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the Western industrialized world, said the researchers from the Karolinska Institutet. But classic risk factors -- such as smoking, obesity and high cholesterol -- do not explain all clinical and epidemiological features of heart disease.
The researchers examined 187 female patients with heart disease and found they had fewer remaining teeth and more gum disease than did a control group. The women also required dentures more frequently.
The possible connection between oral health and heart disease could be bacteria and bacterial products, which introduce inflammatory chemicals into the blood stream, the scientists added.
