Researchers from Tampere University in Finland analyzed clot samples from 75 people who received emergency treatment for ischemic stroke when they attended Tampere University Hospital's Acute Stroke Unit.
The patients had undergone thrombectomies. These procedures remove blood clots by means of catheters conducted through arteries. The catheters can deploy stent retrievers and aspirators to reduce or remove the clot.
When they analyzed blood clots sampled in this way, the researchers found that 79% of them bore DNA from common oral bacteria. Most of the bacteria were of the Streptococcus mitis type, which belong to a group that scientists call viridans streptococci.
The levels of the oral bacteria were much higher in the blood clot samples than they were in other samples that surgeons took from the same patients.
In discussing the implication of the results, the authors note that streptococci bacteria from the mouth can cause serious infection, such as of the heart valves, when they enter the circulation.
There is also evidence that bacteria can activate blood platelets directly. Could this be a possible route to increasing stroke risk?
"Activated platelets" trigger cells that promote atherosclerosis and "speed up the development of atherothrombotic lesions," they write.
"Bacterial surface proteins of S. mitis," they add, "can directly bind to various platelet receptors."
In regard to the recent findings, the researchers note that while they show that oral bacteria are involved, it is still unclear whether they cause strokes or whether "their role is solely as bystander."
In the meantime, they suggest that: "Regular dental care should be emphasized in the primary prevention of [acute ischemic stroke]."
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