According to a study published in the journal JACC: Clinical Electrophysiology, in a sample of 76 patients with cardiac illness, the researchers discovered a statistically significant relationship between periodontitis and fibrosis, the scarring of a left atrial appendage that can cause atrial fibrillation.

Researchers in the study hypothesized that periodontitis aggravates atrial fibrosis. Additionally, they sought to shed light on the association between the presence of clinical periodontitis and the degree of atrial fibrosis in this histological examination of the left atrial appendages. In the study, surgery was used to remove the patients′ left atrial appendages, and the tissue was examined to determine a link between the degree of atrial fibrosis and the severity of gum disease.

According to the corresponding author, Dr. Yukiko Nakano, a professor of cardiovascular medicine at Hiroshima University′s Graduate School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, this study provided fundamental evidence that periodontitis can exacerbate atrial fibrosis and can be a novel modifiable risk factor for atrial fibrillation.

She continued by asserting that in addition to reducing other risk factors, including weight, exercise level, and use of nicotine and alcohol, periodontal care could help with all aspects of managing atrial fibrillation. She did, however, issue a warning that while there appears to be a connection between gum disease and the severity of atrial fibrosis, there has not yet been conclusive proof that one causes the other. 

(Source: https://theprint.in/health/gum-infection-may-risk-heart-arrhythmia-research/1342068/ )