Prevalence of Dental Caries in Each Tooth of Abused Children

<p>It has been reported that abused children have a high prevalence of dental caries. In this study, we analyzed dental caries by tooth type with the aim of further clarifying the characteristics of the status of dental caries in abused children. 534 children aged 2–19 years old who were taken into temporary care shelters were included. Of these, 323 children whose reason for placement was “child abuse” were grouped by age into 2–5 and 6–9 years for the analysis of primary teeth, and into 5–9, 10–14, and 15–19 years for permanent teeth, and were then compared with the results of the Survey of Dental Diseases in Japan. The mean number of decayed teeth per person was significantly higher in the abused group for both primary and permanent teeth, and the mean number of decayed and filled teeth per person for permanent teeth was significantly higher in the abused group in all age groups. On the other hand, there were no findings specific to the abused group in terms of caries prevalence by tooth type, and it was considered that the abused children had a higher percentage of caries in areas that are generally more susceptible to caries occurrence. The abused children had caries at an early stage after the eruption of permanent teeth. The mean number of decayed and filled teeth per capita showed that 25% of the abused children had no decayed and filled teeth as the controls, while some of the abused children had very high numbers of decayed and filled teeth. This may have increased the number of decayed teeth per person of caries in abused children.</p>