Prevalence of traumatic injuries to permanent dentition and its association with overjet in a Swiss child population

Objective Dental trauma is a very common issue in dentistry and its occurrence has been related to many factors. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of traumatic dental injuries in the permanent dentition among Swiss children and its association with overjet. Material and methods A sample of 1900 children aged 613years was prospectively evaluated to determine the number and types of injuries, the influence of overjet on the risk of suffering trauma and the relationships between trauma, age, gender and life conditions. Results The observed prevalence of trauma was higher for boys, with a slight risk increase with age and a peak frequency at the age of 10years. Most of the injuries (91.2%) involved the upper front teeth; 87.2% of all injuries were hard tissue injuries (enamel or dentin fractures), and 12.8% only subluxation and luxation injuries. Children with an overjet of 6mm or more had a four times higher risk of suffering trauma, compared with those with less overjet. Conclusion This cross-sectional study confirmed most of the results from earlier studies dealing with epidemiological factors of dental injuries to the permanent dentition. Of all the variables analysed, overjet stood out as the most significant risk factor: an increased overjet of 6mm or more had a major impact on the risk of trauma, which would speak in favour of early orthodontic correction of an increased overjet to reduce the prevalence of dental trauma.