Evaluation of the Prevalence of Dental Anomalies Among Children Through Panoramic Radiographs for Five Years in Ahvaz, Iran

Abstract

Background: Malocclusions, cosmetic problems, some problems linked to tooth extraction and root canal treatment, and other diseases of the mouth and teeth can occur as a result of dental anomalies (DAs). Objectives: The present research was conducted to determine the prevalence of DAs through panoramic radiographs of children in Ahvaz, Iran, in five years (2018 - 2022). Methods: In this descriptive-cross-sectional study, 1000 panoramic radiographs were selected from the archives of the Radiology Department of Ahvaz Dental School and other radiology centers of the city related to children in the age group of 5 - 12 years. A pediatric dental assistant and a pediatric dental specialist evaluated them for the presence of DAs based on Lam's (2014) criteria and definitions. The frequency of DAs was reported based on numbers and percentages. Finally, the raw results were analyzed using the chi-square test and Student's t-test at the significance level of α = 0.05 by SPSS software version 25. Results: The results showed that only 150 (15%) patients had at least one DA and 850 (85%) had no DAs. Most DAs were related to dental missing (4.2%), dental transposition (2.9%), and ectopic growth (2.2%). The frequency of dental missing (71.4% vs. 28.6%) and dental transposition (72.4% vs. 27.6%) in boys were significantly higher than in girls. The frequency of DAs missing teeth in the lower jaw (61.9%) was significantly more than in the upper jaw (38.1%). Conclusions: Anomalies of missing teeth, transposition, and ectopic growths are among the most common anomalies in Ahvaz children, but the anomalies of microdontia, tooth displacement, dens evaginates, and dentinogenesis imperfect were rare DAs among them. As the prevalence of DAs in Ahvaz children is estimated to be high, early diagnosis and treatment of this complication are suggested as a means to prevent complications.