Traumatic Dental Injuries In Nursery School Children From Ile– Ife, Nigeria

摘要

The purpose of this study was to determine by age and sex the prevalence of traumatic dental injuries to primary incisor and canines and their distribution according to type in nursery school children from Ile – Ife, a suburban population in the south western part of Nigeria. A cross sectional study was conducted in which a total of 600 children (300 boys, 300 girls) aged 3 – 5 year - old attending 13 nursery schools in Ife Central local government were examined. The prevalence of traumatic dental injuries was 23.2% (24% in boys and 22.3% in girls) Boys experienced more injuries than girls but the difference was not statistically significant p> 0.05. The largest percentage of injury was demonstrated by 5 year - old children. The most common type of injury was enamel fracture 53.9%, followed by enamel-dentine fracture 19.2% and concussion 17.3%. The maxillary central incisor was the most vulnerable tooth to injuries 76.9%. The study showed a decline in the prevalence of traumatic dental injuries among suburban Nigerian children in Ile – Ife. However, the high prevalence of dental trauma in the nursery school children and its possible complication on permanent dentition showed that health polices need to be implemented with a view to its prevention. Introduction Traumatic dental injuries are a common occurrence in children. Previous studies of traumatic injuries to primary teeth showed frequencies ranging from 4% to 33% 1. A traumatized primary tooth is a tragic experience for a young patient. Dental trauma in a child patient can result in physical and emotional complications not only to the child but also in their parents.Reported studies showed that the largest percentage of dental injuries was demonstrated by the 4 – 5 year old children 2,3,4,5. The risk of dental trauma increases as the children grow older 6. Boys have been reported to sustain dental injuries more than girls 4,7,8 but a report showed that girls traumatized their teeth more than boys 9. Other reports showed that there were no differences between boys and girls in their susceptibility to traumatic dental injuries 2,3. It has been reported that the most frequently traumatized tooth was the primary maxillary central incisors 10,11,12 and the frequent type of dental trauma was the enamel fracture 5,10,13.Injury to the primary dentition may cause structural defect to the succedaneous teeth or affect the position 14, 15. Although most of these injuries do not have lasting sequealae careful assessment of the patient during the early stages of trauma is imperative. Inapproiate approach to the management of the dental trauma can cause more damage than the trauma itself. The counseling of the parents and instruction given to them should be considered as part of their immediate care. Optimal treatment results follow immediate assessments and care 16, therefore dentists have an ethical obligation to ensure that reasonable arrangements for emergency dental care are available 17.Epidemiological studies on traumatic primary dentition had been documented in the literature 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15 with very few reports from African children 5,13. In Nigeria, reported studies on dental trauma is sparse The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of traumatic injuries to primary incisors and canines and their distribution according to type in nursery school children in Ile – Ife, a suburban population in the south west of Nigeria. Materials and Method The material used in this study consisted of 600 children (300 boys, 300 girls) randomly selected from 13 nursery schools in Ife Central Local Government, Ile – Ife, a suburban population in the southwestern part of Nigeria. During the school year 2004 – 2005, nursery school children aged 3-5 years were examined in their classrooms under natural lighting with the aid of mouth mirror.Traumatic injuries to the maxillary and mandibular primary incisor and canines were recorded according to the method descri