Rickets is a common and frequent oral disease, especially in children and adolescents. It has a high incidence and endangers human health. To this end, the World Health Organization (WHO) has listed rickets as one of the three major diseases that endanger human health. Among them, deciduous rickets are characterized by high rate of sputum, early onset, frequent dental caries, wide range of caries, and rapid development, which seriously endanger children’s physical and mental health.
According to the latest third national oral health epidemiological survey report, in 2005, the 5-year-old children’s deciduous teeth in China were 66.0%, and the sputum was 3.5 (ie, each child had an average of 3.5 caries). In Shanghai, the rate of caries and sputum were higher, 71.74% and 4.17 respectively. The goal of oral health care planning in China is that the rate of deciduous teeth in children aged 5 years in 2010 should reach 40%. Therefore, the prevention and treatment of deciduous teeth in children in China has a long way to go.
However, in clinical work, we found that many parents think that “the deciduous teeth need no treatment, anyway, they have to be replaced”, and they have an indifferent attitude. In fact, this view is very wrong. The following describes the harm of deciduous rickets one by one from three aspects.
Hazards to the oral cavity
If the gingival gingival disease is not treated in time, it will cause inflammation of the pulp, causing severe pain; if it has not been treated in time, it will develop into a periapical periodontitis , causing pain and local swelling of the gums or swelling of the maxillofacial region of the corresponding part.
More serious is that apical periodontitis of deciduous teeth may also affect the subsequent permanent tooth germs at the root end, resulting in enamel hypoplasia. Clinically, we will find that some children’s individual permanent teeth have white or yellow-brown plaque on the tooth surface, and there are depressions on the tooth surface in severe cases. In addition, deciduous apical periodontitis can also cause the eruption of subsequent permanent teeth to be too early or too late, affecting the order and location of permanent teeth eruption.
Severe rickets can cause the length of the deciduous teeth to be shortened or removed prematurely, causing the adjacent teeth on both sides to shift to the gap, causing the positional abnormality due to insufficient gap when the subsequent permanent teeth erupt. Causes the teeth of the permanent teeth to be unevenly arranged.
Some children have chewed one side of their teeth for a long time because of rickets. Over time, the facial development is asymmetrical, causing deformity of the maxillofacial region. In addition, unilateral chewing is also prone to temporomandibular joint disease.
Harm to the whole body health
Because the deciduous teeth are severely damaged or prematurely lost, the cutting and grinding of the food is insufficient, resulting in decreased or lost chewing function, and the gastrointestinal digestion and absorption are weakened. It causes malnutrition and affects development, especially for children with fast growth. Parents often say that after the cure is cured, the child has a good meal and is healthy and strong.
The apical periodontitis caused by rickets often becomes a diseased infection, and its harmful metabolites or bacterial toxins can be carried to other organs by blood or lymph, and the body is resistant to excessive fatigue and colds. When the force is lowered, systemic diseases such as chronic nephritis, rheumatoid arthritis, endocarditis, and sepsis can be induced. If there are other reasons for the above diseases, you can take your child for an oral examination. Maybe it is a small deciduous tooth, which can be called “disease teeth”.
Infants and toddlers are a key period for children’s language training. The deciduous teeth, especially the severe caries of the anterior teeth, can affect the child’s pronunciation, just as people often say that the speech leaks, which has a negative impact on the development of their language ability. At the same time, it will affect the appearance and affect the normal psychological development of the child.
Harm to family society
If you don’t treat it in time, it will develop into endodontic disease and apical periodontitis. The treatment period is longer and the cost is more expensive. Affect the work of parents, delay the study of children, spend more money, and waste social resources.
As the saying goes, “The small hole does not make up, the big hole suffers”, I hope that every parent can realize the harmfulness of the deciduous teeth and change the traditional concept of taking the child only when he has a toothache. Establish a new concept of regular oral health checkups and regular efficacy review to minimize the risk of rickets to children.