Abstract
OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the present study was to investigate factors affecting the formation, severity and location of white spot lesions in patients completing fixed appliance therapy.
MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 45 patients (19 males and 26 females, mean age 15.81 years, standard deviation 2.89 years) attending consecutively Aberdeen Dental Hospital (ADH) between January and June 2013 to have their fixed appliances removed were given a questionnaire to elicit information regarding their dental care and diet. They were then examined clinically as well as their pre-treatment photographs to record treatment data and white spot lesion (WSL) location and severity using a modified version of Universal Visual Scale for Smooth Surfaces (UniViSS Smooth). Absolute risk (AR) and risk ratios (RR) were also calculated.
RESULTS: The incidence of at least one WSL observed in patients was 42%, with males displaying a higher incidence than females. The highest incidence of WSLs was recorded on the maxillary canines and lateral incisors, and on the maxillary and mandibular premolars and first molars. The gingival areas of the maxillary and mandibular teeth were the most affected surfaces. Significant (P < 0.05) relationships were found between the presence of WSLs and the following factors: poor oral hygiene (OH), males, increased treatment length, lack of use of fluoride supplements, use of carbonated soft drinks and/or fruit juices and the use of sugary foods. Poor OH posed the highest risk of developing WSL (RR = 8.55).
CONCLUSIONS: 42% of patients have developed white spot lesions during fixed appliance therapy. Various contributing risk factors were identified with the greatest risk posed by a poor oral hygiene.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | e4 |
| Journal | Journal of Oral & Maxillofacial Research |
| Volume | 5 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Jan 2014 |
Bibliographical note
Date of Acceptance: 24/02/2014Copyright © Khalaf K. Published in the JOURNAL OF ORAL & MAXILLOFACIAL RESEARCH (http://www.ejomr.org), 1 April 2014.
This is an open-access article, first published in the JOURNAL OF ORAL & MAXILLOFACIAL RESEARCH, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License, which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work and is properly cited. The copyright, license information and link to the original publication on (http://www.ejomr.org) must be included.
Acknowledgements:
The author report no conflicts of interest related to this study. The author would like to thank Kim-Weng Tan (Dental School, University of Aberdeen) for his help in the collection of some of the data and Dr. Tatiana Macfarlane (Dental School, University of Aberdeen) for her comments on the manuscript.
Keywords
- dental white spot
- fluoride
- orthodontic wires
- orthodontic brackets
- risk factors
- teeth