Receiving preventive dental care during pregnancy may lower the risk of gestational diabetes and high blood pressure, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Dental Association.
Healthcare professionals should stress the importance of dental care during pregnancy, and dentists should enhance their knowledge and readiness to treat pregnant women, the authors wrote.
"Our study results revealed that the lack of use of preventive oral health care and visits to a dentist or dental clinic for problems during pregnancy is associated with gestational diabetes and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy," wrote the authors, led by Nozomi Sasaki, PhD, MPH, of the Center for Health Workforce Studies Oral Health Workforce Research Center (JADA, January 31, 2025).
This study analyzed 2016-2020 data from the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS), a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-led surveillance system tracking health risks in pregnant women and infants. PRAMS includes core questions for all states and standard questions for selected states, with responses linked to birth records.
Sample weights were adjusted for complex sampling and biases, and participants responded two to six months postpartum to reduce recall bias. Covering 81% of U.S. live births, only states meeting CDC response rate thresholds were included. The final sample comprised 206,080 unweighted respondents from 48 states and territories, they wrote.
Women diagnosed with gestational diabetes or hypertensive disorders of pregnancy had lower rates of preventive dental care and visits during pregnancy than those without these conditions. Women who did not receive preventive oral care had 1.13 times higher odds (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.06-1.2) of developing gestational diabetes and 1.08 times higher odds (95% CI, 1.03-1.13) of hypertensive disorders.
Furthermore, missing necessary dental visits during pregnancy was linked to 1.28 times higher odds (95% CI, 1.13-1.44) of hypertensive disorders compared to those without dental issues, they wrote.
The study, however, had limitations. The research team did not account for other factors influencing gestational diabetes and hypertensive disorders such as nutrition, environmental exposure, or medical history, the authors added.
"Developing a system incorporating several key initiatives is essential for effectively integrating oral and prenatal health care, including establishing integrated care pathways between prenatal and oral health care services, ensuring an adequate oral health care workforce, educating dentists on the safety and importance of providing oral health care services to pregnant women, and embedding oral health education into prenatal care programs," they concluded.
