Purpose: The purpose of this study was to estimate the prevalence of dental trauma among 1- to 4-year-old children and test the association between dental trauma and demographic, socioeconomic, and clinical factors.
Methods: Five calibrated researchers (intra- and interexaminer kappa values=0.89 and 0.81, respectively) examined a representative sample of 407 children in the city of Matozinhos, Minas Gerais, Brazil, during the 2008 national vaccination campaign. Statistical analysis was performed via descriptive analysis, chi-square test (P<.05), and logistic regression.
Results: The prevalence of dental trauma was 47%; among the 407 children examined, 187 had suffered dental trauma. The most prevalent type of alteration due to dental trauma was enamel fracture (85%), followed by enamel-dentin fracture without pulp exposure (11%) and enamel-dentin fracture with pulp exposure (3%). The main location where the trauma occurred was at home (89%), with the cause reported by parents as accidents while running, playing, or crawling (79%). After adjusting for the variables, the child's age (P>.01) and number of siblings (P>.01) remained associated with the outcome.
Conclusion: Results indicate the need for public health policies that include dental trauma as one of the priorities directed at young children.