Facial Profile and Characteristics of Occlusal Features in Primary Dentition among Children Aged 2-5 Years in Southern Nigeria

Abstract

Objective: To assess the facial profile and characteristic features of occlusion in primary dentition among paediatric dental patients in a teaching hospital in Southern Nigeria. Methods: A cross-sectional study comprising 224 children aged 2 to 5 years who visited the paediatric dental clinic over one year with the full complements of their primary dentition. All the children were screened for molar and canine relations, overjet, overbite, anthropoid and developmental spaces, as well as their facial profiles, and the data were recorded. Data were analyzed using statistical software (SPSS version 21.0, Chicago). The Chi-square test analyzed categorical data with a level of significance for all statistical tests set at a probability value of less than 0.05. Results: Bilateral flush terminal plane molar relationship was the most prevalent in 126(56%), followed by the mesial step 84(37.5%). Molar relationship and gender were statistically significant (P= 0.001). Bilateral canine class I was the most common relationship in 189(84.4%), bilateral normal overjet in 191(85.3%) and bilateral normal overbite in 183(81.7%). The majority of the developmental spaces were in the maxilla 136(60.7%) and mostly among males (69%); this was statistically significant (p=0.023). Anthropoid spaces were most prevalent in the maxilla 198(88.4%) and among males (94%), which was statistically significant (p=0.019). Straight facial profile was the most common profile 147(65.6%), although more in males (67%), it was not statistically significant (p=0.823). Conclusion: The study's most prevalent facial and occlusal characteristics were the straight facial profile, bilateral flush terminal relationship, class 1 canine, normal overjet, normal overbite, and maxillary anthropoid and developmental spaces. Revealed in this study were mostly desirable occlusal features but with some occlusal characteristics that deviate from the norm.