Q: Please doctor, can tooth decay/toothache cause miscarriage? What can someone do if pregnant and have toothache?

A: Forcing dental floss in between your teeth can cause periodontal disease, which can cause a dull toothache. Where periodontal disease is not caused by wrong ‘hygiene’ techniques, it could be due to gum disease. Gum disease arises due to lack of good dental hygiene, which causes plaque forming bacteria to accumulate in the mouth and lead to swollen and bleeding gums. If this happens and is noticed early, it can be reversed before it starts causing tooth loss and weakening of the gum and bone structure holding the teeth (periodontitis). Other culprits could be hormones (during pregnancy or menstruation) and chemotherapy.

In pregnancy, the high level of hormones can make gums become more sensitive than usual and thus prone to gingivitis. If this is untreated, it can progress to periodontal disease with…