Prevalence of infraocclusion in primary molars and accompanying dental variations in a Turkish sample

Infraocclusion, a disorder of tooth eruption, can often be found with more than one different variation in a child. The objective of this study was to assess the prevalence and severity of infraocclusion and to investigate the selected dental variations associated with infraocclusion in the West Mediterranean region of Turkey. The sample consisted of 3,228 children aged 7-11 years. The prevalence and severity of infraocclusion and presence of other dental variations (tooth agenesis, supernumerary teeth (ST), dens invaginatus, and taurodontism) were determined by the examination of panoramic radiographies. The development degree of the corresponding permanent teeth was determined using the Nolla and Haavikko method. For statistical testing, the chi-square test was used to compare the data in SPSS software. Infraocclusion was defined in 3.25% of the examined primary molars. There was no statistically significant difference in the prevalence of infraocclusion between girls (n = 51) and boys (n = 73) or between the right and left sides (P > 0.05). It was found that about half of the affected patients had two impacted molars. Infraocclusion had mainly affected the first mandibular molar. A dental variation was also found in addition to infraocclusion in 50.8% of the patients. It was observed that primary molars without successors had more severe infraocclusion. No difference in terms of tooth development was detected (P > 0.05). Given the results of the present study, it was seen that half of the children with infraoccluded primary molar had additional dental variations. Therefore, all children in the mixed and primary dentition must be examined carefully for the infraocclusion of primary molars and accompanying dental variations. Early diagnosis and treatment may prevent the development of complications, so that the condition can be appropriately managed.