类风湿性关节炎与牙科健康之间的联系

几十年来，对口腔健康和ra进行了研究。“出于某种原因，类风湿性关节炎和牙科健康 - 特别是我们称之为牙周病 - 链接的东西 - Johns Hopkins Medicine，MD，MD，MD。事实上，约翰霍普金斯关节炎中心的一项研究发现，超过100名患者，其中70％的牙龈疾病至少具有中度口香糖疾病。该率明显高于一般人群，只有35％的人有牙龈疾病。

研究人员怀疑类风湿性关节炎和牙龈疾病之间的联系，近一个世纪，但最近只有画面变得更加清晰。Konig博士说，目前的思维是众所周知，众所周知的嘴里叫牙周疾病的细菌也可能是触发器。从本质上讲，您的口腔健康可能在发起关节疼痛症状或加剧它们的角度中发挥作用。“没有什么是100％肯定，我们还在学习，”他说，但它可能是口腔健康和关节炎之间的双向街道。

事实证明，相同的细菌可能对牙科疾病和RA的炎症负责。2016年，约翰霍普金斯的研究人员发现了一种称为细菌Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans（尝试快速说三次！）作为导致牙周病的慢性牙龈炎症的来源。基本上，细菌触发了改性蛋白质的产生，即免疫系统作为外国的攻击。科学家认为对细菌的炎症反应可能在整个身体中传播，触发RA症状。

While the correlation between gum disease and RA is becoming increasingly accepted in the medical community, it’s still just a theory. “We know that oral flora can have an impact on rheumatoid arthritis, but not every patient has an A to B connection,” says Jonathan Samuels, M.D., a rheumatologist at New York University Langone Health. In other words, if you have RA, you might never develop gum disease, and vice versa. Also, because RA symptoms can take years to appear, it’s possible someone could have had periodontal disease a decade before an RA diagnosis, and not realize the connection.

科学家们知道肠道细菌可以影响免疫系统，一些研究表明，所谓的肠道微生物组和伴随Ra的慢性炎症之间的潜在联系。这可能是涉及牙周病的相同细菌吗？研究人员正在努力了解。“理想情况下，你能说，”我们认为这种细菌和这种细菌是肇事者，“”Konig博士说。“我们还不要这样做。”

如果某些类型的口腔细菌确实导致Ra，则不是第一次自身免疫疾病与细菌触发有关。以前的研究表明，如果您有狼疮等条件的家族史或遗传标记，例如，您可能更容易发生出炎症过程的细菌。此外，抗生素的试验表明了一些治疗自身免疫疾病的许可。

在理想的情况下,一旦被确定为特定细菌triggers for gum disease and rheumatoid arthritis, doctors may be able identify people at risk for RA based on their teeth and treat them before symptoms even occur. “Interfering with oral health might actually improve overall health in terms of RA,” Dr. Konig explains. “If you were to start aggressive periodontal treatment to get rid of the bacteria, maybe you could prevent them from developing the other disease.” Keeping gums healthy plus preventing the progression of joint pain: Nowthat’s获得你的钱！

Dentists are an important resource for RA folks. If the research on oral bacteria proves correct, a healthy mouth could minimize progression of your arthritis symptoms. “Everyone with RA should have a dentist that is also able to evaluate their overall oral health and the presence of periodontal disease,” Dr. Konig says. And if you have periodontal disease, it’s worth getting a periodontist to guide you through treatment: deep cleaning, medication, and surgery if necessary.

Everyone should get their teeth cleaned at least once per year but if rheumatoid arthritis runs in your family, you might want to go more often. “It’s not unreasonable for people to ask their dentist of periodontist about the overall state of their oral health and use that information to guide their decisions about RA,” Dr. Konig says. An increase in gum inflammation could be an early warning sign of an RA flare and eliminating bad oral bacteria may keep RA symptoms at bay. Bottom line: Take care of your teeth—it just might help your aching joints.