Prevalence of dental fluorosis in Sudanese children from two villages with 0.25 and 2.56 ppm fluoride in the drinking water

Abstract

Dental fluorosis is endemic in Eastern Africa and a high prevalence has been found even in low-fluoride (approximately 0.5 ppm) areas. Substantial seasonal changes in the fluoride content of water have also been reported. The aim of the present study was to ascertain, through one year, the fluoride concentration in water from two underground reservoirs in Sudan, in Treit el Biga (TeB) and Abu Groon (AG), and to assess dental fluorosis in children aged 7-16 years who had been lifelong residents. The water in one of the reservoirs (TeB) was shown to have a low, very stable fluoride concentration (0.25 ppm SD 0.04) whereas the other (AG) had a tenfold higher, and slightly varying, fluoride concentration (2.56 ppm SD 0.26). Dental fluorosis was recorded on maxillary central incisors according to Dean's index. In TeB 91% of the children showed signs of dental fluorosis whereas in AG all children had fluorotic teeth. The Community Fluorosis Index in TeB and AG was 1.40 and 2.44, respectively. There was a significantly higher degree of fluorosis in boys than in girls in the low-fluoride area. In TeB, older boys tended to have more fluorosis than younger boys; the difference, however, was not statistically significant. No significant sex or age differences in fluorosis were found in AG. In both villages great inter-individual variations in dental fluorosis were recorded. The prevalence and severity of dental fluorosis in TeB was higher than that previously reported in areas with similar fluoride concentrations in the drinking water.