The prevalence of Molar Incisor Hypomineralisation (MIH) in a group of Italian school children.

AIM: This epidemiological study in a group of Italian children was undertaken in order to increase our knowledge of the prevalence of Molar Incisor Hypomineralisation (MIH) in different European countries. METHOD: A population of school children aged 7.3 - 8.3 years, living in Lissone, Northern Italy, was examined for the presence and severity of MIH. RESULTS: Of a total of 227 children (113 females), 31 (13.7%) had MIH, the tooth prevalence in the permanent first molars being 5.8%. Fifteen children (6.6%) had demarcated opacities in the incisors with a tooth prevalence of 2.1%. The defects in the molars were mild with the exception of one child who had severe defects. CONCLUSION: MIH was quite common in this Italian town, and the prevalence figures were near those reported in Scandinavian countries but clearly higher than those from Dresden, Germany.

Soldiers' dental complaints compared with clinical findings in the Military Hospital in Bologna, Italy.

There is no previous data published on the frequency and reasons for dental emergencies in the Italian Army. In this study, all the 329 soldiers who sought dental help during a 5-month period in the Military Hospital in Bologna were investigated. Prior to clinical examination, the soldiers filled out a questionnaire concerning their subjective perception about their dental treatment needs. Data from the questionnaire were then compared with the actual status findings. The results showed that endodontic problems comprised the majority of the cases (37.1%), followed by surgical problems as the second most frequent emergency (33.1%). The subjects' own perceptions showed good agreement with the clinical record in cases with endodontal or surgical problems, excluding problems related to wisdom teeth, while those related to caries and periodontal disease were less frequently correctly assessed by the soldiers.