Correlation between plaque maturity and white spot lesions on teeth during orthodontic fixed appliances treatment

Abstract

The main factor in the occurrence of white spot lesions on fixed orthodontic appliances is the difficulty in performing good oral hygiene. The pH of the dental biofilm becomes low due to the presence of fermentable carbohydrates, thereby accelerating the accumulation and maturation of dental plaque. This study aimto determine the relationship between plaque maturity and white spot lesions on teeth with fixed orthodontic appliances.The research design was observational analytic using digital photographs of the six upper anterior teeth of 70 patients undergoing orthodontic treatment at Teeth and Mouth Teaching Hospital Universitas Sumatera Utara. The six upper anterior teeth were given the three-tone disclosing agent to check the level of plaque maturation. The staining of the plaque is cleaned to examine the level of the white spot lesion. The examination was carried out from the intraoral photograph of the patient by dividing the four areas of the tooth surface. The Kruskal Wallis test to see the difference in the level of maturity of the six upper teeth has a significant difference (p = 0.026). Statistically, there is no relationship between plaque maturity and white spot lesions on the six upper anterior teeth (p= 0.162). In this study, the central incisor teeth have a greater chance of developing white spot lesions than other teeth (23.93%). White spot lesions on the use of fixed orthodontic appliances can form, one of which is due to plaque, but there was no significant relationship in the study.