title: Oral microflora in infants delivered vaginally and by caesarean section.
abstract: BACKGROUND.  Early in life, vaginally delivered infants exhibit a different composition of the gut flora compared with infants delivered by caesarean section (C-section); however, it is unclear whether this also applies to the oral cavity. AIM.  To investigate and compare the oral microbial profile between infants delivered vaginally and by C-section. DESIGN.  This is a cross-sectional case-control study. Eighty-four infants delivered either vaginally (n = 42) or by C-section (n = 42) were randomly selected from the 2009 birth cohort at the County Hospital in Halmstad, Sweden. Medically compromised and premature children (<32 weeks) were excluded. The mean age was 8.25 months (range 6-10 months), and parents were asked to complete a questionnaire on socioeconomic factors, lifestyle, and hygiene habits. Saliva was collected and analysed using checkerboard DNA-DNA hybridization. RESULTS.  A higher prevalence of salivary Streptococcus salivarius, Lactobacillus curvata, Lactobacillus salivarius, and Lactobacuillus casei was detected in infants delivered vaginally (P < 0.05). The caries-associated bacteria Streptococcus mutans and Streptococcus sobrinus were detected in 63% and 59% of all children, respectively. CONCLUSION.  A significantly higher prevalence of certain strains of health-related streptococci and lactobacilli was found in vaginally delivered infants compared with infants delivered by C-section. The possible long-term effects on oral health need to be further investigated.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cariology and Endodontics, Institute of Odontology, University of Copenhagen, Denmark. stwe@sund.ku.dk
authors.forename: Mette
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nelun Barfod
authors.forename: Kerstin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Magnusson
authors.forename: Michala Oron
authors.initials: MO
authors.lastname: Lexner
authors.forename: Susanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Blomqvist
authors.forename: Gunnar
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dahlén
authors.forename: Svante
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Twetman
mesh_terms: D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002585:Cesarean Section; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis; D036861:Delivery, Obstetric / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007778:Lactobacillus / Q000145:classification* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D059013:Microbial Consortia; D009055:Mouth / Q000382:microbiology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D012463:Saliva / Q000382:microbiology; D013291:Streptococcus / Q000145:classification* / Q000302:isolation & purification
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial