Dental erosion in deciduous teeth--an in vivo and in vitro study

The aims of this study were to report on severe dental erosion and its associated etiological factors in deciduous teeth of Saudi children (n=16, X macro=6.5 years, R=5--8) in vivo, and to confirm (or reject) the clinical diagnosis by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Another aim was to study progression of erosion in vitro using extracted healthy deciduous and permanent teeth.

For the in vivo study, a questionnaire and clinical examination was completed, medical history obtained and exfoliated eroded teeth (n=8) examined by SEM. For the in vitro study, enamel specimens were prepared from Saudi (n=21) and Finnish (n=19) deciduous teeth as well as Finnish permanent teeth (n=20), immersed in 2% citric acid for 5--30 min, microhardness measurements performed, and the specimens studied by SEM.

The in vivo investigation showed that high intake of acidic drinks and fruits, upper respiratory tract problems and frequent medications may constitute possible etiological and/or aggravating factors for severe dental erosion in Saudi children. Deciduous tooth enamel was softer than permanent tooth enamel. SEM showed no clear differences in the ultrastructure of the enamel specimens amongst the three groups. The clinical diagnosis of severe dental erosion in those cases studied was reliable as verified by SEM.

The presence of dental erosion in children is likely to be associated with a number of general health and dietary factors but is also aggravated by the relatively more rapid progression of erosion in the deciduous teeth.