Prevalence of non-nutritive sucking habits and its relation with anterior open bite in children seen in the Odontopediatric Clinic of the University of Pernambuco

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this work was to establish the prevalence of non-nutritive sucking habits (pacifier and/or digit sucking) and to assess its relation with anterior open bite. METHODS: The sample consisted of 980 records of children of both genders, with ages between 3 and 12 years, who were treated at the Pediatrics Clinic of the University of Pernambuco (FOP/UPE), from February 2000 trough December 2005, both sexes. Pearson's Chi-square test at 5% level of significance was used for statistical assessment. RESULTS: It was observed that 17,7% of the sample had some habit at the moment of the anamnesis (9,6% of digit sucking habit, 8,8% of pacifier sucking habit and 0,7% of both habits) and that the prevalence of open bite was 20,3%. The prevalence of sucking habits in girls was much higher than in boys (22,6% and 12,9%, respectively) and this difference was statistically significant (p = 0,000). A correlation between habits and open bite was proved statistically (p = 0,000): Children with sucking habits had 8 times more chances of developing anterior open bite. CONCLUSIONS: Anterior open bite was associated to the presence of non nutritive sucking habits; sucking habits were more prevalent in girls and in children between three and six years of age.

O formato dos arcos dentários em tomografia computadorizada por feixe cônico / The dental arch form in cone beam computed tomography

O formato dos arcos dentários tem implicações para a funcionalidade oclusal, estética do sorriso e da face, assim como para a estabilidade em longo prazo das correções ortodônticas. Desse modo, o objetivo neste estudo foi avaliar comparativamente o formato dos arcos maxilar e mandibular em imagens por tomografia computadorizada por feixe cônico (TCFC) e modelos de gesso. A amostra consistiu de imagens por TCFC e modelos de gesso pré-tratamento de 30 pacientes ortodônticos, de ambos os gêneros, com média de idadede 5,3 ± 25,4 anos. Um examinador treinado avaliou o formato dos arcos visualmente em imagens axiais por TCFC, adquiridas com o aparelho i-CAT (lrnaging Sciences, Hatfield, PA,EUA) e modelos de gesso, com o auxílio do gabarito Ortho Form (3M Unitek, Monrovia, CA, EUA).A análise estatística foi realizada por meio do teste de coincidência de McNemar-Bowker(a = 0,05). Para os arcos maxilar e mandibular, os formatos cônico de menor dimensão (40%-43,3%) e ovoide (26,7%) foram os mais frequentes. Não houve diferenças significantesentre os métodos na classificação do formato dos arcos maxilares e mandibulares. Conclui-se que as imagens por TCFC apresentam desempenho satisfatório para avaliação do formatodos arcos dentários durante diagnóstico e planejamento ortodôntico.

The dental arch form has been implicated in the occlusal function, smile andfacial esthetics, as well as in long-term stability of corrective orthodontic treatment. Thus, the aim of this study was to assess maxillary and mandibular arch form in cone beam computedtomography (CBCT) in comparison with the categorization by means of plaster models. The sample consisted of pre-treatment CBCT images and plaster models of 30 orthodontic patients, of both genders and mean age of 25.4 ± 5.3 years. A trained examiner assessed arch form by visual inspection on axial CBCT images, acquired with the i-CAT tomograph (Imaging Sciences, Hatlield, PA, USA), and plaster models using the Ortho Form template (3M Unitek,Monrovia, CA, USA). Statistical analysis was carried out using the McNemar-Bowker test of symmetry (a = 0.05). For maxillary and mandibular arches, parabolic with short dimension(40%-43.3%) and elliptical (26.7%) forms were the most frequent ones. No significant differences were found between the classification methods for maxillary and mandibular arches. It may be concluded that CBCT images demonstrated satisfactory performance for the assessment of dental arch form during orthodontic diagnosis and treatment planning.

Effect of breast- and bottle-feeding duration on the age of pacifier use persistence

This study evaluated the effect of breast- and bottle-feeding duration on the age of pacifier use persistence. Questionnaires (n = 723) with information on nutritive and nonnutritive sucking habits of children aged 3-6 years were assessed. The sample was divided according to breastfeeding duration: G1 - non-breastfed, G2 - up to 3 months, G3 - discontinued between 4 and 6 months, G4 - discontinued between 7 and 12 months, and G5 - longer than 12 months. The children were also assigned to 4 groups by age of pacifier use persistence, as well as by age of bottle-feeding persistence: no habits, up to 2 years, 3-4 years and 5-6 years. Associations between nutritive sucking habits and pacifier use were analyzed using logistic regression. The larger breastfeeding groups were G2 (37.9 percent) and G4 (19.4 percent). Many children discontinued pacifier use and bottle-feeding at 3-4 years of age (24.9 percent and 40.1 percent, respectively). Chances of non-breastfed children (G1) with prolonged pacifier-sucking habits, in the three age ranges, were progressively higher in comparison with group G4 (OR: 4.0-7.5, p < 0.01). When comparing bottle-fed with non bottle-fed children, the age range at which bottle-feeding had been discontinued was significantly associated with that of pacifier use cessation: up to 2 years (OR = 6.2), 3-4 years (OR = 7.6) and 5-6 years (OR = 27.0), p < 0.01. It may be suggested that breastfeeding duration has an inversely proportional effect on the age of pacifier use persistence. Bottle-fed children who use pacifiers tend to discontinue these habits at the same period.