Simple dental procedures are usually not considered very dangerous. And one procedure has actually been strongly recommended before undergoing cardiac surgery.

But new evidence shows that your dentist may cause an almost 10% likelihood of dying during surgery if he/she performs this otherwise innocent dental procedure.

In a recent study looking at the rate of adverse outcomes following a common pairing of surgical procedures, researchers revealed in a press release in the journal, Medical News Today.

The American Heart Association has long held that it should be common practice to remove infected and abscessed teeth preceding any cardiac surgery, as the risk of infection stemming from the oral disease was high.

They estimated that the risk of dying from having the teeth removed prior to surgery was less than 1%, and the risk of not having it done was very high.

However, the new study looking at actual rate of demise puts the real rate of death at closer to 8% after having the dental portion of the surgery, before even the heart surgery takes place.

This is a huge difference, according to the researchers, and one they feel should merit more of a conversation between patient and doctor when deciding on the many steps of treatment plan for a cardiac procedure.

More research on this relationship will likely come from the new findings, but regardless of whether or not the AHA will change its recommendations, the bottom line is that prevention of disease is still the safest, most effective way to avoid death related to procedures.

If you have a disease-free set of teeth, and you keep heart disease at bay, you avoid both problems altogether. And since tooth decay has been directly linked to heart disease, keeping those teeth healthy has even more importance than simply avoiding cavities and bad breath.

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