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The Prevalence of the Developmental Defects of
Enamel in a group of 8 -15 years old Indian
children with developmental disturbances
669-674
Correspondence
Chhavi Jindal
Senior Lecturer, Deptt. Of Oral & Maxillofacial Pathology,
National Dental College & Hospital, Derabassi,
Mohali, Punjab, India
Phone numbers: 094171-01415, Facsimile numbers: Nil
E-mail address ichhavi25@gmail.com
Aims: To find the overall prevalence of the developmental defects of enamel among the total number of disabled children in the Panchkula district of Haryana, India. To compare the prevalence of this dental developmental anomaly with the various types of disabilities like mental handicap, locomotor handicap, hearing impairment, partial sight and multiple handicaps.
Material and Methods: A total of 996 subjects (499 controls and 496 disabled children) were examined for the developmental defects of enamel by using a Modified DDE index. The 496 disabled children included 189 with mental retardation, 203 with locomotor handicaps, 39 with hearing impairment, 31 with partial sight and 34 with multiple handicaps.
Statistical analysis:
The data which was obtained was analyzed by using the SPSS package version 13. The differences weretested for statistical significance by using the Pearson’s Chi- Square test.
Results:
The percent prevalence of the developmental defects of enamel among the disabled group was 40.9% and in the controls it was 5.4%. The percent prevalence of the various developmental defects of enamel,in decreasing order, among the various disabled groups was found to be as follows: 73.5% in the group with multiple handicaps, 56.4% in the group with the hearing impairment, 39.4% in the group with the locomotor handicaps, 37.6% in the group with the mental handicap and 16.1% in the group with the partial sight. Conclusions: Overall, a high prevalence rate of the developmental defects of enamel was observed in this study in the disabled children. This reflects the association of various systemic disturbances with the development of the tooth.