Prevalence and Associated Factors of Dental Caries among Primary School Children in South-East Nigeria.

OBJECTIVES: The study aimed to identify the prevalence and associated factors of dental caries in primary school children. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study of 657 primary school children from South East, Nigeria. Data on age, sex, birth rank, dental visits, oral hygiene status, and enamel defects were collected. The presence of dental caries was recorded by using the World Health Organization criteria. Mean DMFT/dmft scores were determined and SPSS version 21 was used for analysis. Chi-square test and multivariate logistic regression were conducted and P ≤ 0.05 was considered significant. RESULTS: The study participants were 316 (48.1%) males and 341 (51.9%) females, and their mean age was 8.41 ± 2.18 years. The prevalence of caries was 22.7% while the mean DMFT and dmft scores were 0.10 and 0.45, respectively. Bivariate analysis showed a significant association between birth rank (P = 0.04), oral hygiene status (P = 0.05), enamel defects (P < 0.001), and dental caries. Multivariate regression analysis showed that good oral hygiene (OR = 0.180, CI: 0.036-1.003, P = 0.04), fair oral hygiene (OR = 0.576, CI: 0.345-0.993, P = 0.04) and enamel defects (OR = 4.939, CI = 2.406-10.137, P < 0.001) were significant predictors of caries in this study. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of dental caries in this study was high. Oral hygiene and enamel defects were predictors of dental caries in the study population.

Investigation of the esthetic outcomes of white spot lesion treatments.

OBJECTIVE: The present study compared the ability of bleaching, resin infiltration and microabrasion to restore the appearance of existing white spot lesions (WSL) on tooth surfaces as close as possible to that of the original healthy enamel. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixty extracted human teeth with WSL were randomly assigned to three treatment groups (20/group). Prior to treatment, the colour of the surrounding healthy enamel and the WSL were measured as the baseline and pre-treatment (PreRX) colours respectively using spectrophotometer based on CIE L*A*B. The L-value was used for the statistical comparison. WSLs in each group were treated respectively by bleaching, infiltration or microabrasion following the manufacturer's instructions. Colour measurement was repeated after treatment. Both intragroup and intergroup comparisons were performed using ANOVA followed by Tukey's multiple comparison test (α=0.05). RESULT: In all groups the mean L-values were significantly higher in PreRX WSL (P < 0.01; Tukey) compared to baseline (sound enamel). After treatment the difference in mean L-value between baseline and WSL increased significantly (P < 0.01, Tukey) in Bleaching and Microabrasion groups by 1.4% and 1% respectively, but decreased in Infiltration group by 3.4%. Thus resin infiltration decreased the L-value of the WSL, bringing it closer to the L-value of the sound enamel while bleaching and microabrasion increased the L-value. CONCLUSIONS: Among the three treatment modalities investigated in this study, resin infiltration was the most effective in masking the WSLs.

Pattern of malocclusion and caries experience in unrepaired cleft lip and palate patients in Enugu.

BACKGROUND: Clefts are common birth defects, usually accompanied by various malformations that include malocclusions, and may be associated with tooth decay. The aim of this study was to assess the malocclusion and caries status of the patients with unrepaired clefts who presented at the National Orthopaedic Hospital Enugu. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional, descriptive study was conducted among patients with unrepaired cleft lip and/or palate that presented at the National Orthopaedic Hospital, Enugu between January 2009 and December 2011. Detailed records of 140 patients with cleft deformities who presented to the hospital within the study period were analyzed for the cleft pattern, whereas those patients above 6 years of age (52 patients) were analyzed for malocclusion using the Angle's classification of malocclusion. Assessment for dental caries according to WHO guidelines was made for all the patients. RESULT: There were 74 males and 66 females. Cleft lip with or without alveolus involvement had equal prevalence (47.1%) (66 patients) with combined cleft lip and palate; eight patients had isolated cleft palate (4.71%). Angle's class 1 malocclusion was statistically significantly higher than other classes (P = 0.000). Class I malocclusion was seen in 38 patients (73.1%), whereas class 111 was seen in 8 patients (15.4%) and class 11 in 6 patients (11.5%). Eight patients (100%) who developed class 111 malocclusion all had a hard palatal defect. Proclining of maxillary anterior teeth (increased overjet) was the most common orthodontic anomalies, reported in 25 patients (48.1%) (P = 0.002). Caries prevalence of 12.9% was observed in this study. Caries experience was statistically significantly higher in deciduous than permanent teeth (P = 0.002). CONCLUSION: The high prevalence of malocclusion in these cleft patients emphasizes the need for an interdisciplinary team approach and early inclusion of dental care especially oral hygiene to prevent tooth decays.