Effect of Fluoride in Drinking Water on the Osseous Development of the Hand and Wrist in Children

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Abstract
Exposure to fluoride in drinking water was studied for evidence of detrimental effects on skeletal calcification and bone development in children. Three groups of children aged 7 through 14 years, living in Lubbock and Amarillo, Texas, and Cumberland, Md., were selected on the basis of continuous exposure to their communal drinking waters, which contained fluoride in the amounts of 3.5-4.5 ppm F, 3.3-6.2 ppm F, and 0.1 ppm F, respectively. Radiographs were taken of the right hand and wrist of 2050 children. From these X-rays, skeletal age was assessed and a quantitive index of ossification was determined. No evidence, available by radiographs, was obtained which would indicate that there was any adverse effect on carpal bones or on their growth and development as a consequence of continuous use of drinking water containing approximately 3.5-6.2 ppm F. These results confirm safety of maintaining fluoride level of public water supplies at about 1.00 ppm F, by controlled fluoridation, for reduction of tooth decay.

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