“That tooth is more of a threat to her and her baby than anything you will ever do.” This was the advice given to me a number of years ago by a friend who also happened to be my emergency patient’s obstetrician. Our mutual patient was three days overdue and suffering from an acute abscess of an upper left third molar.
So why was I so concerned?
For generations, health professionals were taught that the only safe time to provide a pregnant patient with dental care was during the second trimester. We were afraid that any treatment rendered before 13 weeks, however innocuous, would cause such teratogenic harm that the baby would be born looking like a centaur.
We were equally afraid that the slip of a prophy cup after 27 weeks would trigger premature labor. Sadly, some physicians had recommended no dental care for their patients during pregnancy, and many women believe that dental care during pregnancy is not safe.
It is a good thing that we live in the 21st century and have gotten past those myths, right? Or maybe not.
The Children’s Health Alliance of Wisconsin recently asked for WDA’s assistance in developing a better means of communicating with dentists about prenatal care as part of their Healthy Smiles for Mom and Baby program. They recognize that those myths are still with us, and we need to make a more concerted effort to educate everyone about not only the importance, but the necessity of good prenatal dental care.
The Healthy Smiles for Mom and Baby Advisory Board is currently surveying WDA members to gain a better understanding of our experience managing pregnant patients in our practices and what we learned about this topic during our dental education. Please complete the survey by Sept. 9 here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/JL5DZD3.
The WDA has provided a number of educational resources on our WDA.org website Just enter “pregnancy” in the search box to find current information regarding safety and special considerations. Also available is information that you can share with your patients.
Take a moment to review the article by our own Wisconsin Dental Association member Dr. Tom Raimann (Hales Corners) which was recently published in the August issue of the Journal of the American Dental Association (member login required) on the ethics of delaying dental treatment during pregnancy.
Finally, educate members of your staff so when a woman calls to cancel her appointment because she is pregnant, they can explain about the importance of good prenatal dental care and encourage her to keep the appointment.
Having the flu is a good reason not to visit your dentist and stay home until you are better. But remember, pregnancy is not contagious!
Unfortunately this is a common problem and medical/dental providers and patients should be better educated . I see it all the time at MUSOD Dental Emergency Clinic; pregnant patients come to our clinic because nobody else wants to see them.
Great article Dr. Darling, and catchy title. This issue really needs to “catch” more attention in the medical AND dental worlds. I completed the survey. Thank you for raising awareness.