Background: The early loss of primary teeth may reduce arch length required for the succeeding permanent tooth and thus result in crowding, rotation, and impaction of permanent teeth. The present study evaluates the prevalence of early loss of molars of primary teeth in children in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.
Materials and methods: An experienced examiner performed all clinical examinations under natural light, a total of 1529 children (759 boys and 770 girls) ages between 5 and 10 years were selected for the study. Data including age and missing teeth were collected. The data collected was then subjected to statistical analysis.
Statistical analysis: Microsoft Excel/2000 (Microsoft office XP) data spreadsheet was used and later exported to the Statistical Package for Social Science for Windows (version 10.0, SPSS Inc., Chicago Ill., USA).
Results: The results showed that of the sample 34.46% had early loss of primary teeth with boys showing an increased incidence of loss of primary teeth (54.64%) and the greater prevalence was found among the age group of 8-9 years. The most common missing tooth was the first molar (43.8%) followed by second molars (33.2%). Early loss of teeth was common in the mandibular right side (36.81%). It can be concluded that the prevalence of early loss of the lower first primary molar was the most common in the present study.
Conclusion: The prevalence of early loss of primary teeth was present in predominantly in male children (54.64%) when compared to female children (43.35%) which was statistically significant (P = 0.03). The most commonly affected were the mandibular teeth (58.63%), the most common tooth being the first molar (44%) followed by second molar (33%).
Keywords: Early loss; prevelance; primary molars.