Attributes of Dental Trauma in a School Population with Active Sports Involvement

PURPOSE Dental trauma has become an important aspect of dental public health. The primary requisite before actively dealing with such problems is to describe the extent, distribution, and variables associated with the specific condition. The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence and role of socioeconomic status and anatomic risk factors in traumatic dental injuries (TDI) to permanent anterior teeth in 10 to 16 year old Sainik (Army) school, children in India. METHODS A cross-sectional study was conducted. Data was collected through a survey form and clinical examination. The permanent anterior teeth of four hundred and forty six male school children were examined for TDI. The socio-economic status, lip coverage and overjet were recorded. Statistical significance for the association between occurrence of TDI and the various risk factors was carried out. RESULTS The prevalence of TDI to permanent anterior teeth was 23.8%. A large number of injuries occurred during participation in sports. Inadequate lip coverage and a large maxillary overjet were identified as important predictors for dental trauma. CONCLUSION A high prevalence of dental trauma was observed in the study population suggestive of low awareness regarding the cause, effects and prevention of the condition.