Clinical Significance
Considerable clinical significance is related to the prevention of mother-child transmission of MS in high-caries-risk populations. The first dentinal caries or restoration was delayed by nearly 3 years, and the need for
Dental caries remains a major oral health problem, but many areas lack resources and need cost-effective prevention strategies. For young children the presence of early mutans streptococci (MS) colonization appears to be a relevant marker of increased risk for caries development. MS is usually transmitted to infants by mothers, so the MS level in mothers is the target for preventive efforts. Reducing the MS mother-child transmission may offer long-term benefits for the child's dental health. In
This retrospective study extended the follow-up period to include 148 high-caries-risk 10-year-old children from the original early 1990s study group, who were divided into an intervention (xylitol) group and a control group. Their dental health was compared to that of a reference group consisting of 359 children in the same age cohort. Annual data were obtained from public dental care registries.
Caries-free age was 8.2 years in the xylitol group, 5.8 years in the control group, and 8.1 years in the reference group. Over the 10-year follow-up period, the xylitol group had a higher proportion of children without dentinal caries in primary teeth than was noted in the control group. The xylitol and reference group levels were comparable. No dental caries up to age 6 years were found in 60% of the xylitol, 42% of the control, and 57% of the reference group. The figures up to age 8 years
Both the occurrence of caries and the need for restorative treatment were reduced in children whose mothers chewed xylitol gum to reduce MS transmission. These effects were seen up to age 10 years, making this an extremely satisfying preventive effort. Clinical Significance Considerable clinical significance is related to the prevention of mother-child transmission of MS in high-caries-risk populations. The first dentinal caries or restoration was delayed by nearly 3 years, and the need for
Laitala ML, Alanen P, Isokangas P, et al: Long-term effects of maternal prevention on children's dental decay and need for restorative treatment. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol 41:534-540, 2013
Reprints available from ML Laitala, Dept of Pedodontics, Cariology and Endodontology, Univ of Oulu, PO Box 5281, Oulu, FI 90014, Finland; fax: +3588344064; e-mail: [email protected]