The applicability of the Demirjian, Willems and Chaillet standards to age estimation of 5-15 year old Indian children

BACKGROUND

Demirjian's method of age estimation has been reported to overestimate age and Willems' method to give consistently more accurate results. Not enough, however, is known about the applicability of Chaillet's standards.

AIM

The present study aimed to compare the accuracy of Demirjian's, Willems' and Chaillet's standards in age estimation of 5 to 15 year-old Indian children.

DESIGN

In this cross-sectional observational study, three methods were compared for accuracy in estimating the age of 1200 Indian children aged 5-15 years.

RESULTS

Demirjian's method overestimated age by +0.24 ± 0.80 years, +0.11 ± 0.81years and +0.19 ± 0.80 years in boys, girls and the total sample, respectively. With Willems' method, overestimations of +0.09 ± 0.80 years, +0.08 ± 0.80 years and +0.09 ± 0.80 years were obtained in boys, girls and the total sample, respectively. Chaillet's method underestimated age by -0.12 ± 0.69 years, -0.45 ± 0.88 years and -0.25 ± 0.83 years in boys, girls and the total sample, respectively. Statistically significant differences were observed between dental and chronological ages with all methods (p < 0.001). Significant sex-based differences were observed only with Demirjian's and Chaillet's methods (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

Willems' method was the most accurate in age estimation, followed by Demirjian's and Chaillet's methods. While Demirjian's method was more accurate than Chaillet's in females, Chaillet's method better predicted the age of males.

A comparative evaluation of the applicability of two adapted Häävikko methods for age estimation of 5-15 year old Indian children

Dental age determination methods that require the assessment of all teeth are tedious and time-consuming. Adapted methods that assess fewer teeth may be more easily applicable. The present study compared the applicability of two adapted Häävikko methods which evaluate seven mandibular teeth (HAM1) and four reference teeth (HAM2) in a population of 5 to 15 year-old Indian children. The HAM1 method underestimated age by -0.17 ± 0.80 years, -0.29 ± 0.83 years and -0.22 ± 0.82 years in boys, girls and the total sample respectively, while the HAM2 method underestimated age by -0.34 ± 0.88 years, -0.51 ± 0.82 years and -0.41 ± 0.86 years in boys, girls and the total sample, respectively. Significant gender-based differences were observed in mean DA-CA with both methods (p < 0.05). While both methods could be used for age estimation of the present population, the HAM1 method was the more accurate of the two.

Role of plaque in the clearance of salivary sucrose and its influence on salivary ph

BACKGROUND

The prevalence of dental caries in children, in India, is higher than many of the industrialized countries. The sugar most commonly associated with dental caries is sucrose, as the microorganisms in the dental plaque have the ability to convert this dietary constituent into various organic acids.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

This study was conducted to study the effect of the presence of plaque on the salivary clearance of sucrose and to study the effect of the presence of plaque on salivary pH, following sucrose clearance.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Salivary sucrose determination was done by using the anthrone technique. A Digital MHOS pH meter estimated the salivary pH.

RESULTS

Presence of plaque increased the salivary sucrose clearance time and decreased the salivary pH at various time intervals.

CONCLUSIONS

The microbial etiology of dental caries is the dynamic relationship among the dental plaque microbiota, dietary carbohydrates, saliva and pH lowering, and the cariogenic potential of the dental plaque. Caries occur preferentially in the dentition sites characterized by high exposure to carbohydrate and diminished salivary effect.

RURS' elbow guard: an innovative treatment of the thumb-sucking habit in a child with Hurler's syndrome

Thumb sucking is the process of sucking on the thumb for oral pleasure. Thumb and finger sucking habits, or nonnutritive sucking, are considered to be the most prevalent of oral habits. Some parents are concerned by thumb sucking and may even try to restrain the infant or child. In most cases, this is not necessary. Most children stop thumb sucking on their own. When older children continue to suck their thumbs, it could mean they are bored, anxious, or have emotional problems such as depression. This article presents a case report of a child with Hurler's syndrome along with thumb sucking/biting habit. Hurler's syndrome, also known as mucopolysaccharidosis I, is a rare condition inherited as an autosomal-recessive trait. It represents the classical prototype of mucopolysaccharide disorder. A unique appliance to prevent thumb sucking/biting was developed and termed as "RURS' elbow guard," which was successfully used to break thumb sucking of the child with Hurler syndrome. The present report also describes the steps in fabrication of this new habit-breaking appliance, which is also designed to protect the finger from the effects of the sucking habit.