Abstract
ABSTRACTYoung swimmers are particularly susceptible to the onset of oral diseases. Objective To evaluate the oral health status in young competitive and non-competitive swimmers, involving an assessment of salivary cariogenic bacteria and secretory IgA (S-IgA) concentration.Material and Methods Before training sessions (T1), 54 competitive and 69 non-competitive swimmers had the following parameters assessed: decayed, missing, and filled teeth (DMFT), Plaque Index (PlI), and Gingival Index (GI). At T1 and after training sessions (T2), stimulated saliva was collected and microbiological and immunological analyses were performed.Results Competitive swimmers trained 2.02±0.09 hours 5 times a week, while non-competitive swimmers trained 2.03±0.18 hours a week. A total of 14.7% of competitive swimmers suffered dental trauma related to sports. Only 11.76% of the competitive swimmers took a daily dose of fluoride, against 32.65% of non-competitive swimmers (p=0.029). Neither group followed an established diet or presented statistically significant differences in terms of nutritional supplement drink and chocolate intake. There were statistically significant differences in terms of oral hygiene. No significant difference in clinical indexes (DMFT, PlI, and GI) was present. S. mutans was harbored by 18.6% of competitive and the 32.2% of non-competitive swimmers. S. sobrinus was detected in 22.03% of competitive and 91.6% of non-competitive swimmers (p<0.05). S. sanguinis was found only in the saliva of competitive swimmers. The average S-IgA of competitive swimmers decreased significantly at T2 (p<0.05). The pool water had a daily average pH of 7.22.Conclusions Microbial markers, immune status and sporting characteristics are important for establishing guidelines for management of training load in order to minimize physical stress and the risk of oral infection.
Highlights
High performance standards are required for athletes, especially for swimmers, who must be totally healthy individuals
We discovered that the competitive swimmers trained for the same amount of hours in the swimming pools because the Italian competition rules, edited by the Swimming Italian Federation (FIN), divide the athletes by age and the ones in the same category have an identical training program. 7KLV LV FRQ¿UPHG E\ WKH IDFW WKDW DOO DWKOHWHV belong to the same Society and they have the same trainers
While 14.7% of competitive swimmers had suffered dental trauma related to sports, there were no cases in the control group
Summary
High performance standards are required for athletes, especially for swimmers, who must be totally healthy individuals. Dental diseases harm quality of life and have a negative impact on selfesteem, eating ability, and health, causing pain, anxiety, and impaired social functioning[4,11,18]. Little information is available on the correlation between the performance of swimming at a competitive level and tooth decay occurrence[14]. Dental caries is a lifetime disease that depends on biological factors present within the saliva and dental plaque. Dental plaque favors the emergence of mutans streptococci and Lactobacillus spp., which are capable of rapidly fermenting dietary carbohydrates and lowering the pH to the extent WKDWVLJQL¿FDQWDPRXQWVRIWRRWKGHPLQHUDOL]DWLRQ can occur[12,22,23]. The concentration of cariogenic bacteria levels within saliva and plaque determine if caries will occur[24]
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