Prevent diseases that cause tooth breakage and early tooth decay

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hanh (Cao Lanh City, Dong Thap Province) asked: I understand that poor enamel mineralization can be related to systemic diseases, affecting people's quality of life. Please tell me, how can we prevent this disease?

Regarding this issue, Professor, Dr. Vo Truong Nhu Ngoc, Deputy Director of the Institute of Dentistry Training, Hanoi Medical University, responded as follows:

A disease that is of great concern to the dental industry worldwide is the mineralization of the enamel of the molars - incisors (MIH). If the disease is not detected and treated promptly, it can lead to serious consequences and tooth loss. Many cases of MIH that are not treated promptly are severely damaged and require early extraction.

The pathogenesis of MIH is still unclear, but the clinical manifestations of localized and asymmetric lesions suggest a systemic origin with disruption of enamel formation that may occur in early adulthood or even later in life. The ideal time to diagnose MIH is as soon as the tooth appears in the oral cavity. Typical symptoms of MIH teeth are multiple opaque or brown spots that appear early in tooth eruption, and teeth that are prone to fracture. Molar teeth with MIH often have associated caries, and when there is associated caries, the tooth is prone to major fractures that require tooth extraction.

Currently, the rate of students with oral diseases is very high, more than 90% of children have cavities in their mouths. Poor oral hygiene, lots of food residue; many children under 7 years old have cavities in both jaws, large cavities with only the roots remaining in the mouth; children over 7 years old who have permanent teeth, more than 50% of their first molars have large cavities; the rate of crooked teeth, stuck teeth due to early loss of baby teeth is high. Especially many children do not receive any intervention. This shows that oral care for school-age children in the locality is still too limited. Currently, the world has paid much attention to preventing oral diseases for children right from when the mother is pregnant, especially right after birth, developed countries have recommended that children need to have dental check-ups to detect abnormalities of the oral mucosa; advice on oral hygiene when they do not have teeth yet; advice on how to feed and breastfeed to create favorable conditions for the jawbone to develop smoothly. When baby teeth grow, regular check-ups are needed so that the dentist can advise on care and use of fluoride varnish therapy to prevent tooth decay from the beginning. The dental industry in the region has also paid much attention to the need to detect tooth decay at an early stage. This is the first stage of tooth decay, the damage is only demineralization damage, not forming cavities. At this stage, if remineralization treatment is timely, the damage can be completely restored.

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