Caries Experience in Deciduous Dentition of Rural Chinese Children 3–5 Years Old in Relation to the Presence or Absence of Enamel Hypoplasia

Abstract

The association of enamel hypoplasia (EHP) with dental caries of the deciduous dentition was determined in 1,344 rural Chinese children aged 3–5 years. The degree of EHP was determined using a modified DDE Index. Number of decayed, missing, and filled teeth and tooth surfaces were determined for all subjects. Anthropometric assessment of body weight and height was done as an indirect measure of the nutritional status of the children. Results from the study showed that the prevalence of EHP was 22.3% in the total study population. The prevalence of dental caries was 82.3%. There was no difference in the caries experience between males and females. Significantly greater caries experience was observed among the children living in a low socioeconomic county and children with low height for age. Children with low birth weight showed a slightly higher percentage of caries than those born with normal birth wight. Children with enamel hypoplasia demonstrated a significantly higher caries experience than those who did not have such defects. The results of this study consistently support previous studies that found nutritional deficiency to have an important impact on tooth development and susceptibility to dental diseases. This study also indicates that the presence of enamel hypoplasia may be a predisposing factor for initiation and progression of dental caries, and a predictor of high caries susceptibility in a community, particularly if fluoride programs are not implemented.

Aleitamento materno e cárie do lactente e do pré-escolar: uma revisão crítica

“…9,30,40 Malnutrition may cause enamel hypoplasia, and just like iron deficiency anemia, it may lead to reduced salivary secretion and low buffering capacity. 7,11,24,35,42,43 Childhood malnutrition is still a major problem in Brazil, especially in the North and Northeast regions, 44 which may contribute to a larger number of decayed teeth in these regions. The mean DMFT (number of deciduous teeth that are decayed, extracted or indicated to be extracted and filled) at the age of five years in the North region is approximately 27% higher than the mean for the Southeast region.…”

“…ECC is more commonly found in children who live in poverty or in poor economic conditions, 7,11,[24][25][26][33][34][35][36][37] who belong to ethnical and racial minorities, 12,38 born to single Although the habit of dipping the pacifier in sugar is associated with early colonization by Streptococcus mutans in predentate infants, 49 a systematic review did not find any consistent correlation between the use of pacifiers and the development of ECC, regardless of the length of use of pacifiers and of the introduction of sweeteners or not. 50 Cariogenic role of human milk, cow s milk and milk-based formulas in infant feeding…”

Effect of a Brazilian regional basic diet on the prevalence of caries in rats

“…The present results concerning the RBD agree with those reported by other investigators (6,(21)(22)(23) who reported that malnutrition can cause a rise in the prevalence of caries. Various factors may have contributed to the high prevalence of caries found with the use of the RBD, such as enamel malformation due to episodes of malnutrition (24)(25)(26)(27)(28)(29), affected salivary glands (17,23,30,31), and the composition of the diet itself which, in addition to being deficient in proteins, vitamins and minerals, is rich in carbohydrates (10). When comparing the results for different times of animal feeding, we observed that the animals fed 30 days (1A and 2A) presented caries with less prevalence than the animals fed 60 days (1B, 2B), except for groups 3A and 3B.…”

Desnutrição energético-protéica e cárie dentária na primeira infância

“…Os autores encontraram hipoplasia de esmalte em 18,6% das crianças desnutridas, enquanto que, no grupo com ausência de desnutrição, não houve registro dessa alteração. Segundo Li et al 28 , a prematuridade aliada a um baixo peso ao nascer gera uma associação significativa ao desenvolvimento de hipoplasia de esmalte, um importante fator para o início e a progressão da cárie dentária. De fato, Batista et al 29 em trabalho de revisão sobre a alimentação, o estado nutricional e a condição bucal da criança, concluíram que as deficiências nutricionais no período de formação dentária são causas de defeitos na estrutura do dente, tendo potencial para alterar sua forma e atuar na quantidade e na qualidade da saliva, influenciando no processo de formação da cárie dentária.…”

“…A pesquisa de 1994 confirmou esses achados 41 . Li et al 28 , estudando 1.344 crianças chinesas da zona rural puderam observar que a deficiência nutricional tem um importante impacto no desenvolvimento dentário e suscetibilidade à cárie.…”