Aesthetic perception of dental fluorosis--opinions of dentists and non-specialists.

UNLABELLED: Aesthetic perception of the changes in teeth appearance is one of the factors that makes a person undertake a dental treatment. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to survey dentists' and non-specialists' aesthetic perception of dental fluorosis. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We recruited 120 young people (age range 18-22 years with little knowledge of dental fluorosis and 120 randomly selected dentists. Evaluation of the abnormalities in the teeth aesthetic appearance was conducted using cards specially designed for the purpose. RESULTS: The results suggest that changes in dental fluorosis, even in the mildest forms, are perceived as deviations in the aesthetic appearance of teeth. Non-specialists are more tolerant towards the changes characteristic of mild dental fluorosis compared with their reaction to other conditions that result in deviations in the type of dentition as a whole. CONCLUSION: Further studies are needed to more precisely determine the role of aesthetic perception in determining the indications for the complex treatment of dental fluorosis.

Comparative study of dental caries and dental fluorosis in populations of different dental fluorosis prevalence.

INTRODUCTION: There is evidence that the prevalence of dental fluorosis in many countries has increased over the last three decades along with a noted decrease of dental caries. To date no comparative studies of dental caries and dental fluorosis have been conducted in Bulgaria reflecting the present-day conditions of life. AIM: To study comparatively the prevalence of dental fluorosis and dental caries and to establish what relationship, if any, there is between them. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We performed a comparative analysis of three epidemiological studies carried out in Plovdiv and Dimitrovgrad in 2004, 2005 and 2008. The hypothesis tested was that dental caries was less frequent in populations with higher prevalence of dental fluorosis (with predominance of mild fluorosis cases). Dental fluorosis was diagnosed using Dean's criteria, and dental caries was scored using the WHO criteria. The results were analysed using the alternative analysis and analysis of variance at a level of significance P < 0.05. RESULTS: The prevalence of dental fluorosis in the studied populations in Dimitrovgrad in 2004 was 56.99%, in Plovdiv in 2005--7.80%, and in 2008--23.18%. The comparison of the studies in Dimitrovgrad and Plovdiv in 2005 showed lower prevalence of dental caries and lower DMFT values in all age groups (P < 0.001) in Dimitrovgrad, where the prevalence of dental fluorosis was greater than that in Plovdiv (P < 0.001). The comparison between the studies in Plovdiv alone in 2005 and 2008 showed an increase in dental fluorosis in 2008 (P < 0.001). The prevalence of dental caries was higher in almost all groups, but the differences failed to reach statistical significance (P < 0.001). The DMFT index was higher in 2008 (P < 0.001) with the exception of some age groups. CONCLUSION: The higher prevalence of dental fluorosis does not necessarily lead to low prevalence of dental caries and low DMFT values in the specific population.

Prevalence of dental fluorosis among 4- to 14-year-old children from the town of Dimitrovgrad (Bulgaria).

INTRODUCTION: There has been no study on the prevalence of dental fluorosis in Bulgaria of today where people have free access to some fluoride-containing products. AIM: The aim of the study was to investigate the prevalence of dental fluorosis among children 4 to 14 years old from the town of Dimitrovgrad, where due to unsatisfactory qualities of tap water people consume bottled water including such with fluoride levels higher than 1.5 mg/l. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The study included 1504 randomly selected children. We analysed subjects with dental fluorosis according to Dean's modified criteria. The following severity levels were defined: 0 - normal; 0.5 - suspicious; 1 - very mild; 2 - mild; 3 - moderate; 4 - severe. Data were analyzed separately for the different types of dentitions. RESULTS: Results showed that 54.52% of all children included in the study had dental fluorosis in different degrees. Primary teeth were affected by dental fluorosis less frequently than permanent teeth (P < 0.001). In mixed dentition cases 41.41% of the children had fluorosis of permanent teeth only, 1.64% had dental fluorosis of primary teeth only and 12.50% had both their primary and permanent teeth affected. The proportion of individuals with the lowest degree of severity - 0.5, was the greatest both for the primary and permanent teeth. Comparison with the proportions of children with more severe degrees of fluorosis revealed significant differences (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: The results of the study showed excessive fluoride intake during tooth development and suggested a need for further research of risk factors.