Oral Health and Dental Management

Abstract

Traumatic Injuries in the Primary Teeth of 4- to 6-Year-Old School Children in Gulbarga City, India. A Prevalence Study

Deepak P Bhayya, Tarulatha R Shyagali

Aims: The aims of the study were: to assess the prevalence of traumatic injuries to the teeth of 4- to 6-year-old children
living in Gulbarga City, India, to determine prevalence of such dental traumatic injuries at the ages of 4, 5, and 6 years
and to compare the prevalence of these injuries between male and female children.
Methods: A cross-sectional survey was performed. It consisted of a clinical examination of upper and lower deciduous
anterior teeth by one examiner and an interview using a questionnaire with a sample of 1500 children aged 4 to 6 years
who attended kindergarten and primary schools in Gulbarga city. Garcia-Godoy’s (1981) classification was used to classify
the traumatic injuries. Intra-examiner consistency was assessed by kappa values on tooth-by-tooth basis. The chisquare
test was used to analyse any gender and age differences.
Results: The prevalence of traumatic dental injuries was 76.13%, of which crown fracture with enamel involvement of
teeth was the most prevalent, followed by crown fracture with both enamel and dentine involvement. Significant and
highly significant differences were found between boys and girls for discoloration of teeth (P<0.05), crown fracture
involving enamel (P<0.001) and crown fracture involving both enamel and dentine (P<0.001). The prevalence of traumatic
dental injuries in the 5-year-old children was higher than that in the 4- and 6-year-olds. The commonest cause of
injury was due to a fall (60%) and in 40% of cases of traumatic injury, they occurred in a field/playground.
Conclusions: The prevalence of traumatic injuries to the anterior teeth of the 4- to 6-year-olds who took part in this study
was very high. There is a need to run educational programmes to increase parents’ awareness of the risks of dental trauma.