Correlation between Caries Related Microorganisms in the Dental Plaque and Saliva with Dental Caries Level in the Upper and Lower Jaws in 5 - 9 Years Old Children in Baghdad City

Abstract

Background: The oral cavity is considered as a complex ecological niche, its complex microbial community is reflected to it. Streptococcus mutans has been implicated as one of the major etiological factor of dental caries. Tooth surfaces colonized with Streptococcus mutans are at a higher risk for developing caries, while lactobacilli are considered as the secondary invaders, not initiators of the carious lesion. The main purpose of this study was to correlate the dental caries (for primary and permanent teeth) in the upper jaw with the streptococcus mutans and lactobacilli count in the dental plaque and saliva, also to correlate the dental caries (for primary and permanent teeth) in the lower jaw with the streptococcus mutans and lactobacilli count in the saliva. Materials and methods: Forty seven children aged 5-9 years old were selected for this study. Dental caries recording was carried out by the dmfs index (decayed, missed, filled surfaces for primary teeth) to inspect the primary teeth and DMFS index (decayed, missed, filled surfaces for permanent teeth) to inspect the permanent teeth, by using the dental mirror and explorer. Collection of salivary samples was performed in the morning between (10-11) a.m. at least one hour after breakfast, then normal saline was added to have tenfold dilutions, for the purpose of full colony counting of the caries related microorganisms (streptococcus mutans and lactobacilli), then inoculation was done in the special selective media (for the streptococcus mutans is Mitis-Salivarius-Bacitracin agar, and for the lactobacilli is Rogosa agar). Counting of the colonies of the bacteria were estimated by the aid of dissection microscope Results: The highest level of dmfs means was found in primary upper teeth, it was 17.6383 ± 10.10 while for the permanent teeth the mean of DS and DMFS was highest in the lower teeth, it was 0.7391 ± 1. Pearson correlation was used to show the correlation between the ds and dmfs of upper and lower primary teeth with the level of streptococcus mutans in saliva (sm. Sal) and lactobacillus in saliva ,there was a significant correlation between the ds and dmfs for upper primary teeth at level 0.01 (2-tailed), and there was negative correlation between dsl and level of streptococcus mutans in saliva (sm. Sal) also there was negative correlation between dmfs for upper and lower primary teeth with level of streptococcus mutans in saliva, also the correlation between lactobacillus level in plaque with streptococcus level in plaque was negative, while for upper permanent teeth the correlation was negative with both type of bacteria level in plaque with the DSU and DMFSU Conclusion: The caries activity was more prominent in upper teeth than lower teeth, levels of streptococcus mutans were not associated with high caries activity, which emphasizes and consistent with the fact that the dental caries is a multifactorial disease, related to many factors.

A comprehensive review of the application of probiotics and postbiotics in oral health

“…Factors such as a cariogenic diet, poor oral health, high counts of cariogenic bacteria, dental plaque, inadequate saliva flow, and lack of sufficient fluoride exposure are among the environmental risk factors that cause tooth decay (Petersen, 2003;Selwitz et al, 2007;Laleman et al, 2014;Iheozor-Ejiofor et al, 2015;Laleman and Teughels, 2015). As a general fact confirmed by various studies, the composition of oral microbiota is closely associated with oral health, and its disruption is an important step in oral disease (Zainab et al, 2016). S. mutans, one of the bacteria in the oral microflora, is known as the basic cause of dental decay and one of the biofilm-forming bacteria (Abd and Ali, 2016).…”

Determination of Radon Radiation Concentration in Groundwater for Some Wells of Baghdad City

“…There are three naturally radioactive isotopes of radon present in the environment , Thoron (Rn-220), Action (Rn-219).The most abundant among the naturally occurring isotopes are R-222, an alpha emitter, with half-life of 3.8 day, while other isotopes Rn -220 and Rn -219 can be neglected due to their short half-life (5.66 -3.92) minutes respectively [1].The half-life of radon isotope Rn-222 is long enough to allow it to migrate through the groundwater and soil and enter the air , therefore interring the human environment [2]. Natural radioactivity measurement is large importance to many researchers all over the world, which led to a worldwide national survey in the past two decades, measurement of natural radioactivity in the groundwater is very important to determine the amount of change of the natural background activity with time due or leakage radioactive [3,4].…”