The correlation between malocclusions and morphofunctional aspects: analysis of patients aged from 7 to 12 years old

Regiane Almeida Da Silva,Erika Josgrilberg,Renato Morales Jóias,Renata Pilli Joias,Luiz Renato Paranhos,Sigmar De Mello Rode

doi:10.14295/bds.2016.v19i4.1304

Abstract

Objective: To classify the malocclusions and their occlusal and morphofunctional aspects in order to establish possible correlations. Material and Methods: The present observational and analytical study was performed within 432 dental records of patients. The patients were aged between 7 and 12 years old (228 males and 204 females) from an Educational Institute in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. The data regarding the malocclusions and the related associations underwent parametric statistical tests for quantitative and qualitative analysis (ANOVA, Tukey test and Chi-square) considering the significance level at 5%. Results: Most of the patients had permanent dentition (58.6%), followed by mixed dentition. Angle’s Class II malocclusion was the most prevalent (67.2%), followed by Class I and III. Overbite and anterior open bite represented, respectively, 47% and 7.2% of the vertical discrepancies. The average overbite was 3.08mm, while the average overjet was 4.67mm. Approximately 43,1% of the sample presented moth breathing. Atypical swallowing reached 78.7% of the patients. Statistically significant correlations were observed associating Angle’s Class III malocclusion with anterior cross bite and bilateral posterior cross bite; as well as between Angle’s Class II with overbite, and Angle’s Class I with overbite and atypical swallowing. A correlation was observed between atypical swallowing; the use of pacifiers; and predominant mouth breathing (p<0.001). Conclusion: An important correlation was found between the type of malocclusions and the morphofunctional aspects of occlusion in patients aged from 7 to 12 years old, indicating the need for immediate intervention once the diagnosis is established. Keywords: Applications of epidemiology, Malocclusion, Child.

Highlights

Malocclusions, according to epidemiological data of the World Health Organization (WHO), consist in changes in the oral health of government interest, since it is the third most prevalent oral disease, second only to dental caries and periodontal disease. [1]Depending on the intensity, duration and frequency, several factors may influence the development of malocclusions, featuring its multifactorial etiology [2] and, much of it presents its first signs of morphological deviations in deciduous dentition. [3] Hereditary aspects and deleterious habits such as finger and pacifier sucking lead the triggering factors of malocclusion in the deciduous and mixed dentition. [1] These habits, often, are associated with early interruption of breastfeeding,[4] since bottle feeding presents a lower frequency of sucking, which reduces the emotional satiety, inducing the child to seek substitutes as the finger and pacifier.The malocclusions, besides causing aesthetic problems, influence in speech, breathing, posture, chewing and swallowing, [2] so, its diagnosis and treatment should be performed incipiently
Epidemiological surveys should be conducted in different regions, for reporting the status of a miscegenous population, being of great importance for planning and execution of dental services for prevention and treatment, [5] this study aimed to identify the malocclusion prevalence according to Angle’s classification, the mean of overjet and overbite and correlate them with the respiration and the swallowing types
Pacifier sucking was observed in 23.6% of the subjects, nursing bottle feeding in 13% and finger sucking in 7.9%; 78.7% presented atypical swallowing, 38% nasal breathing, 43% oral and 19% mixed

Summary

Introduction

Malocclusions, according to epidemiological data of the World Health Organization (WHO), consist in changes in the oral health of government interest, since it is the third most prevalent oral disease, second only to dental caries and periodontal disease. [1]Depending on the intensity, duration and frequency, several factors may influence the development of malocclusions, featuring its multifactorial etiology [2] and, much of it presents its first signs of morphological deviations in deciduous dentition. [3] Hereditary aspects and deleterious habits such as finger and pacifier sucking lead the triggering factors of malocclusion in the deciduous and mixed dentition. [1] These habits, often, are associated with early interruption of breastfeeding,[4] since bottle feeding presents a lower frequency of sucking, which reduces the emotional satiety, inducing the child to seek substitutes as the finger and pacifier.The malocclusions, besides causing aesthetic problems, influence in speech, breathing, posture, chewing and swallowing, [2] so, its diagnosis and treatment should be performed incipiently. The data regarding the classification of malocclusions (Angle classification), presence of deep/ open and/or cross bite; amount of overjet and overbite; functional aspects (type of breathing and swallowing); and deleterious habits like pacifier sucking, finger sucking and nursing bottle feeding were logged in a spreadsheet for analysis.

Results

Conclusion