Prevalence of dental trauma in 5–6‐ and 12–14‐year‐old boys in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

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Abstract
Abstract – This study involved 354 boys aged 5–6 years and 862 boys aged 12–14 years, attending 40 schools in Riyadh. All children were examined at school by a single dental examiner, using criteria similar to those employed in the survey of children’s dental health in the United Kingdom. The prevalence of dental trauma in 354 Saudi boys aged 5–6 years was 33%. The most common type of dental trauma was fracture of enamel (71%) followed by loss of tooth due to trauma (13%), fracture into enamel and dentine (7%), discolouration (5%), pulp involvement (4%). No relationship between the degree of overjet and the occurrence of dental trauma in the primary dentition was observed. The prevalence of dental trauma in 862 12–14‐year‐old boys was 34%. The commonest dental trauma was fracture of enamel (74%) followed by fracture into enamel and dentine (15%), fracture into enamel‐dentine and pulp (5%), loss of tooth due to trauma (3%), and discolouration (0.4%). A significant relationship (P=0.02) between the increased overjet (≥ 6 mm) and the occurrence of dental trauma in the permanent dentition was reported. The present study found no evidence of dental care provided for traumatised primary incisors in 5–6‐year‐old boys. The treatment of dental trauma in 12–14‐year‐old boys was negligible (2.4%). The present Saudi Arabian study showed higher prevalence of dental trauma in 5–6‐ and 12–14‐year‐old boys than the reported results of the United Kingdom Children’s Dental Health Survey of the same age groups.