Abstract
Background: Enamel defects can negatively affect the appearance of the teeth, increase the tooth
sensitivity, disrupt the occlusal function, and make the teeth susceptible to caries. The present study
was carried out to investigate if the delivery type and birth weight have any effect on the prevalence of
tooth caries and enamel defects among a population of children from Hamadan, Iran.
Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on a total number of 182 children aged 6-12 years
old born from 2006 to 2012. Studied variables were birth weight, birth height, head circumference,
gestational age, gender, delivery type, birth order, duration of nocturnal feeding, and nutrition type up
to two years old. Developmental defects of enamel index were used to determine the prevalence of
enamel defects and decayed, missing, and filled teeth (DMFT) index to study dental caries. The results
of tests were analyzed by SPSS software using t test, chi-square test, Fisher exact test, Mann-Whitney
test, Kruskal-Wallis test and Pearson correlation coefficient.
Results: The overall prevalence of enamel defects was obtained 15.38%. The prevalence was significantly
associated with delivery type (P=0.05), while no significant association was found between enamel
defects and birth weight (P=0.684). DMFT index was significantly related to birth weight and delivery
type, while duration of nocturnal feeding was the only variable found to be significantly related to
DMFT index.
Conclusions: The cesarean section and low birth weight (LBW) may be associated with the
developmental defects of enamel (DDE) and dental caries. Nocturnal feeding was another factor that
may be associated with dental caries and DDE.