Early‐life events and developmental defects of enamel in the primary dentition

• Published in: Community dentistry and oral epidemiology Vol. 46; no. 5; pp. 511 - 517
• Main Authors: Pinto, Gabriela dos Santos, Costa, Francine dos Santos, Machado, Tanielley Vieira, Hartwig, Andreia, Pinheiro, Ricardo Tavares, Goettems, Marília Leão, Demarco, Flávio Fernando
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Denmark Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.10.2018
• Subjects: Adolescent; Apgar Score; Brazil - epidemiology; Child, Preschool; Children; deciduous; Defects; Dental enamel; dental enamel hypoplasia; Dental Enamel Hypoplasia - epidemiology; Dental Enamel Hypoplasia - etiology; Dentition; early‐life events; Enamel; Health Behavior; Humans; Hypoplasia; Logistic Models; Longitudinal Studies; Mothers - psychology; Multivariate Analysis; Neonates; oral health; Oral Health - statistics & numerical data; Pregnancy; Prevalence; Risk Factors; Surveys and Questionnaires; Teeth; tooth; Tooth, Deciduous; Young Adult; Brazil; dental enamel hypoplasia; oral health; deciduous; early-life events; tooth
• DOI: 10.1111/cdoe.12408
• ISSN: 0301-5661

Objective To investigate the occurrence of developmental defects of enamel (DDE) in the primary teeth of children aged 24‐36 months and their association with early‐life events. Methods This study was undertaken with children aged 24‐36 months in Pelotas, Southern Brazil. Information on demographic and socioeconomic characteristics, events occurring during pregnancy and neonatal events was collected previously. In this study, information on the health‐related behaviours of mothers and children was collected using questionnaires and information about children's oral health was achieved through clinical oral examination. The outcome, the prevalence of DDE (≥1), was determined using the DDE index (FDI). Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed. Results Five hundred and three mother/child dyads were evaluated, and 13.1% of the children had DDE. Multivariate analysis showed that children with Apgar scores less than 7 had around 2.5‐fold higher odds of developing DDE than children with Apgar scores between 7 and 10 (OR = 2.78; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.35‐5.73). The analysis of different types of enamel defects shows that the presence of hypoplasia (OR 3.13; 95% CI, 1.35‐7.27) and diffuse opacities (OR 3.95; 95% CI, 1.68‐9.27) remained associated in adjusted analysis with Apgar scores. Conclusion Early‐life events may cause DDE. A lower Apgar score was associated with a higher prevalence of enamel defects.