Perspectives and Practices of Gynecologist’s about Prenatal Oral Health and Association Between Periodontal Disease and Adverse Birth Outcomes

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Prenatal oral health has garnered growing attention due to its potential impact on maternal and fetal well-being. Thus, this study seeks to investigate gynecologists' perspectives and practices related to prenatal oral health care while concurrently examining the association between periodontal disease and adverse birth outcomes, shedding light on the comprehensive significance of oral health during pregnancy and its potential implications for maternal-fetal health. METHODOLOGY:A quantitative cross-sectional study based on questionnaire was performed targeting consultant gynecologists in all district hospitals of city Karachi. The responses were computed by SPSS. Descriptive statistics with frequencies were computed and Chi-square was used to find out the associations between different variables RESULTS:Half of the gynecologists (55%) reported that they never asked nor documented their patient's last dental visit before commencing prenatal care. About 38% stated that they sometimes referred their patients to dental practitioners. Approximately 27% of the gynecologists admitted to not knowing the association between periodontal diseases and adverse birth outcomes. Statistically significant associations were observed between work experience and knowledge about gingivitis in pregnancy (p-value 0.012) as well as periodontitis with adverse birth outcomes (p-value 0.019). CONCLUSIONS: Health professionals appeared to lack caution when it came to the oral health of their patients, despite possessing a good understanding of the oral-systemic connection during pregnancy. Prenatal care providers should consider developing inter professional relationships and promptly referring their patients for dental assessments KEYWORDS: Prenatal care, Oral Health in Pregnancy, Periodontal diseases, Adverse outcomes of pregnancy, Awareness about oral health