Relationship between severe-early childhood caries, salivary mutans streptococci, and lactobacilli in preschool children of low socioeconomic status in Bengaluru city

Abstract

To find out the relationship between severe-early childhood caries (s-ECC) and salivary counts of mutans streptococci (MS) and lactobacillus (LB) in preschool children of low socioeconomic status. A cross-sectional study was designed among 50 children aged 2-5 years selected from five Anganwadi centers in Bengaluru city. Clinical examination was carried out and caries status was recorded using the World Health Organization (WHO) criteria. Twenty-five children diagnosed with s-ECC based on American Association of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) criteria and 25 caries-free counterparts were selected. Whole non-stimulated saliva was collected from all children and cultured for MS and LB. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 14. Fisher's exact test, Mann-Whitney test, and Spearman's correlation were used to find out significant relationships. P values <0.05 were considered as statistically significant. Twenty-one out of 25 children with s-ECC were positive for MS and 22 children were positive for LB. A significant difference in the mean number of MS colonies (12.2 vs. 4.16) and LB colonies (8.4 vs. 3.8) among children with s-ECC and caries-free counterparts (P < 0.01) was also found. A significant positive correlation was also found between caries experience and salivary MS and LB counts. s-ECC is positively correlated with salivary levels of both MS and LB in preschool children of low socioeconomic status. Suitable preventive strategies need to be planned when children are still young.