en Oral medicine Oral medicine Original article Original article <div> <table align="center" hspace="0" vspace="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="padding: 0cm 12px; text-align: justify;" valign="top"><span style="font-size:13pt"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times=""><b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:" verdana=""><span style="color:#2e74b5">Background and Aim</span></span></span></b><b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:" verdana=""><span style="color:#2e74b5">:</span></span></span></b><b> </b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:" verdana="">As maternal periodontal disease can increase the risk of preterm birth and low birth weight,</span></span><b> </b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:" verdana="">this study aimed to investigate the oral health status of pregnant women considering the circumstances during pregnancy and the necessity to keep the mother and baby healthy</span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:" verdana="">. &nbsp;</span></span></span></span><br> <span style="font-size:13pt"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times=""><b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:" verdana=""><span style="color:#2e74b5">Materials and Methods:</span></span></span></b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:" verdana=""> This cross-sectional study was conducted on 200 pregnant women referred to perinatal clinics in Kerman city. The participants&rsquo; oral health behavior, decayed, missing, and filled teeth (DMFT) score, plaque index (PI) and community periodontal index (CPI) were assessed. Data were analyzed by the Chi-square test and multivariate linear regression model using SPSS 21.</span></span></span></span><br> <span style="font-size:13pt"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times=""><b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:" verdana=""><span style="color:#2e74b5">Results: </span></span></span></b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:" verdana="">Of all, 39.5% had dental problems during pregnancy. Only 5.4% of them presented to a dentist. The participants&rsquo; concerns regarding the risks of dental procedures during pregnancy was the most common reason for not seeking dental treatment. The mean PI and DMFT were 0.75&plusmn;0.48 and 11.29&plusmn;3.88, respectively.<br> Multivariate analysis showed that the DMFT index score had a significant correlation with age (P=0.001) and educational level (P=0.03). The CPI and gestational age (in weeks) were also significantly correlated (P=0.005</span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:" verdana="">).</span></span></span></span></td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </div> <div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:" verdana=""><span style="color:#2e74b5">Conclusion:</span></span></span></b> <span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:" verdana="">Due to poor oral health of pregnant women, healthcare planners should provide inter-professional, community-based, and preventive oral health interventions before and during pregnancy</span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:" verdana="">.</span></span></div> Oral Health, Pregnancy, Pregnant Women, 79 87 http://jrdms.dentaliau.ac.ir/browse.php?a_code=A-10-941-2&slc_lang=en&sid=1 Bahareh Hosseini bhd_1362@yahoo.com 100319475328460011330 0000000232024731 No Endodontology Research Center, Ker-man University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran Tayebeh Malekmohammadi tmalekmohammadi@yahoo.com 100319475328460011331 0000000293555894 No Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Department of Dental Public Health, School of Dentistry, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran Tayebeh Naderi tayebeh_ndr39@yahoo.com 100319475328460011332 0000000322666690 No Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran Maryam Bakhtiary atena_m17@yahoo.com 100319475328460011333 0000000275597388 No Private Dentistry Practice, Kerman, Iran Peimaneh Hosseini Dastnaei phosseinid@gmail.com 100319475328460011334 0000000163249151 No Private Dentistry Practice, Isfahan, Iran Sahar Mafi Sahar.mafi86@gmail.com 100319475328460011335 0000000201503641 Yes Department of Oral Medicine, School of Dentistry, Kermanshah, Iran