Introduction: A non-carious lesion (NCL) is the loss of hard dental tissue on the neck, tuberculum and incisal edges of the teeth. Interest in clinical presence and in unclear etiology of these lesions allows for their future prevention and treatment.
Objective: The aim of the study was to determine presence and clinical characteristics of NCLs and dentine hypersensitivity (DH), as well as their possible risk factors in children, in the population of the city of Novi Sad.
Methods: A total of 55 subjects were included in the present study, aged between three and 18 years. Each subject completed a structured questionnaire related to the etiological factors, and all teeth of each subject were examined by two independent clinical dentists to determine NCLs and DH. In the case of small children, their parents or guardians filled out the questionnaire. Teeth with NCLs and DH were diagnosed according to the Basic Erosive Wear Examination (BEWE) index and by a blast of air according to Schiff and Hypersensitivity Index. The review was carried out by inspection and probing.
Results: The data were analyzed by clinical examination and comparison of the answers to the questionnaires. We observed an increased presence of non-caries lesions on primary teeth, compared to permanent teeth, with a statistically significant difference (X2=3.86, df=1, p=0.04). The changes were observed in 82 teeth, and were most frequent on the canine deciduous teeth (65%) and canine permanent teeth (51%). BEWE index was 10-11% to 92-100% in permanent, and 51-57% in deciduous teeth. Majority of patients with primary teeth (89.36%) did not respond to air stimulus, while most patients with permanent teeth (74.29%) did not react to Schiff Index. In the estimate of sensitivity, the respondents reported hypersensitivity on 6.38% of the deciduous teeth and 22.86% of the permanent teeth. Comparison of etiology factors did not reveal a direct link with the appearance of NCLs.
Conclusion: Research has shown that despite the lack of subjective symptoms, these lesions have distinct clinical characteristics. The fact that they occur even in deciduous dentition justifies the need for further investigations.