Lower Oral Health Scores Linked to Higher Pain Scores in Women

MONDAY, April 14, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Low oral health scores are associated with higher pain scores, including migraine headache, among women, according to a study published online April 9 in Frontiers in Pain Research.

Sharon Erdrich, from The University of Sydney, and colleagues examined associations between self-reported oral health, the oral microbiome, and various pain presentations in women. Oral health was assessed using the World Health Organization oral health questionnaire, and validated instruments were used to determine body pain, migraine, and abdominal pain.

The researchers found participants in the lowest quintiles of oral health had a greater likelihood of suffering migraine headaches and having high body pain scores. After controlling for confounders, four oral pathogenic species were significantly associated with Short Form-36 bodily pain. There was a moderate correlation seen for relative abundance of Gardnerella (genus) with oral health scores, while associations with migraine were seen for Lancefieldella (genus) and Mycoplasma salivarius.

“We report lower oral health scores and higher abundance of a range of oral pathobionts to be associated with higher pain scores, suggesting a contribution to the pain phenotype,” the authors write. “Subject to larger studies confirming these findings, we propose that the oral microbiome has a role in pain signaling and requires consideration of an oral microbiome–nervous system axis.”

Two authors disclosed ties to Viome Life Sciences.

Abstract/Full Text