Submerging primary molars in Israeli rural children

Abstract

Dental study casts of 1530 Israeli rural children aged 3-13 years, evenly represented by the sexes, were examined for submersion of their primary molars, 24.8% of the children had one or more of these teeth affected. Out of 8250 teeth at risk, 8.81% were submerged to various degrees. Over 50% of them were primary mandibular first molars, close to 26% were primary mandibular second molars. The number of affected teeth rose with age in both sexes. Sex differences were significant only at 5-7 years, when girls were more frequently affected. Children with one or two affected teeth predominated. The submerged teeth were predominantly located in one or in both quadrants of the same arch. The degree of submersion became more severe with age.

Tooth ankylosis in deciduous teeth of children with cleft lip and/or palate

“…This is in agreement with the findings of Coutinho, Souza 6 (1994) and Koyoumdjisky-Kaye, Steigman 12 (1982), even though some authors have observed a larger occurrence among females 1,5,14 or males 10 . The higher prevalence of ankylosis at the age ranges 11-12 (31.8%) and 8-10 (24.4%) observed in this study may reflect a tendency, previously reported in the related literature, of an increase in the number of cases upon aging 6,12,18 , or even the progressive nature of ankylosis, which aggravates the degree of infraocclusion, thus providing a better visualization of this anomaly in older patients [11][12][13] . No statistical difference between the occurrence of ankylosis and the different types of clefts (Table 1) could be found, suggesting that, even though clefts may bring about distinct dental alterations in the maxilla, according to the diversity of its anatomical involvement, they do not significantly interfere with the occurrence of infraocclusion.…”

“…Regarding gender, there is no agreement in the related literature. Predominance among females has been reported 1,5,14 , but Koyoumdjisky-Kaye, Steigman 12 (1982) found this tendency just for the age range between 5 and 7 years, whereas other authors demonstrated higher frequency among males 10 , and even no differences at all 6,12 . In relation to age, some authors 6,12,18 mentioned a tendency towards an increase in the number of cases of ankylosis upon aging.…”

“…In the most severe cases, extraction of the involved deciduous molars is required, followed by strict space maintenance or even its mechanic recovery 17 . The frequency of tooth ankylosis presents large variations among studies, varying from 1.08% 11 up to 24.8% 12 . Regarding gender, there is no agreement in the related literature.…”

“…Regarding tooth and arch, most of the studies report that the first molars and the mandibular dental arch are most frequently affected 6,7,10,12,18 . The aim of this study was to characterize the prevalence of ankylosis in deciduous molars of individuals with cleft lip and/or palate due to the importance of early diagnosis of this anomaly to prevent the development of malocclusions, since these patients already present changes in anatomy and tooth position, which are inherent to their malformation.…”

“…The etiology of ankylosis is still unknown, but local metabolism disturbances, excessive masticatory loads and genetic disturbances may be related to its development 3 . The possibility of a hereditary feature is currently under discussion 12,13 , since the genetically determined defect of the periodontal membrane might explain the ankylosis of impacted teeth 3 .…”