Extrinsic black staining of teeth: a review

Aim: Discovering of the prevalence, causes and consequences of the Extrinsic black staining(EBS) of teeth in pediatric population.

Materials and Methods: Upon completion of the scientific search, the review included 47 scientific articles from the electronic databases, reference lists of articles, and selected textbooks in the time interval from 1976 to 2023.

Conclusions: The results show that EBS is a possible protective factor against early childhood caries. Dental plaque and gut microbiome may be related to EBS in the temporary dentition. The literature suggests a decreased caries prevalence in the presence of EBS which associated with low incidence of caries in children. The nature of the black pigmentation is suggested to be a form of bacterial plaque with an insoluble ferric salt. Tabaco smoke, food and antibiotics that can be also a risk factors for EBS. There are some clinical and localization features that dentist have to pay attention for. Many diseases of various systems and organs are directly related to black plaque. With this review, we wanted to encourage dentists to identify the problem in childhood and collaborate in a multidisciplinary team to improve treatment efficiency and speed up the selection of the right tactics for the most person-centered approach to avoid worsening the problem in adulthood.