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. 2018 Jun;18(2):359-368.
doi: 10.4314/ahs.v18i2.21.

Infant oral mutilation (IOM) related to traditional practices among inner city pre-school children in Sudan

Alya Isam Elgamri  1 , Azza Tagelsir Ahmed  1   2 , Omer Elfatih Haj-Siddig  3 , Judith R Chin  4
Affiliations

Infant oral mutilation (IOM) related to traditional practices among inner city pre-school children in Sudan

Alya Isam Elgamri et al. Afr Health Sci. 2018 Jun.

Abstract

Background: The term Infant Oral Mutilation (IOM) refers to the aggressive cultural rituals where primary canine tooth germs of infants are enucleated for therapeutic reasons.

Objectives: To determine the prevalence and risk factors for IOM among inner city pre-school children in Khartoum.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 212 randomly selected children from twelve government pre-schools in Khartoum were examined for the presence of IOM. Socio-demographic, feeding and teething-related data were collected by self-administered questionnaires.

Results: The mean age of the sample was 4.7 years. The prevalence of clinical IOM was 10.8%. Multivariable regression analysis revealed that children who suffered from diarrhea during teething were 7.15 times more likely to have clinical IOM over their counterparts (p<0.0001). Mothers who were educated below elementary school level were 2.69 times more likely to have children showing clinical IOM (p= 0.0369).

Conclusion: The present study showed that the practice of IOM is common among inner city children. Certain teething-related symptoms especially diarrhea and maternal education could be strong determinants of the malpractice of IOM.

Keywords: Infant oral mutilation (IOM); Sudan; pre-school children; traditional practices.

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Figures

Image 1
Image 1
4 years old male, Enamel defect tooth #83& #73
Image 2
Image 2
6 years old female, Missing tooth #83 and Enamel defect tooth #53
Figure 1
Figure 1
frequency (%) distribution of dental anomalies per tooth.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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