My two front teeth have caps, and I'm allergic to the nickel, which makes my gums around the caps constantly swollen, although I have no pain. Antibiotics cures the swelling while I'm taking the meds. My question for you is, in your opinion, can this irritation cause me to get heart diease? Thank you.

Thank you for your question. Gum irritation itself does not cause heart disease. The problem that can occur when you have gum irritation is that it can seed bacteria that normally live in the mouth into the bloodstream. When that occurs, the vast majority of people have normal body defense mechanisms that can kill and eliminate the bacteria without any problems. In some people there may be some previous heart valve damage that can allow bacteria to infect the valve in a protected environment such that the body cannot control it. The infection of the heart valve is called "endocarditis."

There have been a few reports in the medical literature of heart problems being more common in patients with bad dental health, but no causal effect has really been determined. It may be that the problems that lead one to have poor dental health may contribute to increasing the risk of heart problems and is a separate marker without being the cause.

If you are concerned have your physician listen to your heart for the presence of murmurs that would represent blood flow through the heart valve. If the valve is abnormal or has endocarditis there will be a development of a heart murmur or change in a preexisting one.

Thanks again for the question.

Dr. Fung

-- Dr. Gordon Fung, MD, MPH, is a cardiologist and associate clinical professor of medicine at the University of California at San Francisco Medical Center at Mt. Zion.

First published July 26, 2004
Last updated June 24, 2008
Copyright © 2004 Consumer Health Interactive