Overview

The aim of the Oral Health and Pregnancy project, a collaboration between the European Federation of Periodontology (EFP) and Oral-B, is to promote women’s oral health during pregnancy through guidelines for patients and for healthcare professionals.

The importance of oral health during pregnancy cannot be underestimated.  Scientific studies have shown connections between gum disease and adverse pregnancy outcomes such as premature birth, low birth weight, and pre-eclampsia.

The Oral Health and Pregnancy project offers a web portal that is full of advice – based on the latest scientific evidence – about the steps that need to be taken to ensure good oral health in pregnant women. The portal includes written, graphical, and video material in three areas:

• The importance of women’s oral health during pregnancy;
• The links between periodontal diseases and pregnancy;
• Preventing and treating periodontal disease during pregnancy.

At the heart of the Oral Health and Pregnancy portal are sets of guidelines about oral health in pregnant women for dentists, dental hygienists, other health professionals, and for women themselves. These guidelines have been drawn up by some of the world’s leading experts in periodontal science and are based on the results of numerous scientific studies.

The project will also provide a toolkit for the 30 national societies of periodontology which are members of the EFP to enable them to run their own campaigns on oral health and pregnancy, whether through similar portals or through the production and distribution of leaflets based on the guidelines. This toolkit will enable the important information contained in the guidelines to reach health professionals and women across Europe in local languages and adapted to local needs.