Traumatic dental injuries in children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess the frequency and distribution of traumatic injuries in 247 children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) who were 7-16 years old and attended the Ondokuz Mayis University Medical Faculty (Department of Child Psychiatry, Samsun, Turkey). Each psychiatric diagnosis was based on criteria from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th edn, Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association, 1994). Traumatic dental injuries were recorded using the classification of the World Health Organization, which was slightly modified by Andreasen and Andreasen (Textbook and color atlas of traumatic injuries, 3rd edn. Copenhagen, Denmark: Munksgaard; 1994. p. 151). Thirty-two percent (78/247) of the ADHD children presented 103 traumatized teeth. The frequency of dental injuries peaked in children who were 10-12 years of age, and showed no significant difference between subtypes of ADHD or gender. The maxillary central incisors were the most vulnerable to injury, and there were no differences between the right and the left sides in terms of susceptibility. Uncomplicated crown fracture (52.4%) and complicated crown fracture (16.6%) were the most commonly encountered types of injury. The main causes of dental injury were falls, collisions with objects, violence, and traffic accidents, and there was no difference in the frequencies of these causes between subtypes of ADHD, age, or gender. Only 5.1% (4/78) of the ADHD children sought treatment within the first 24 h of the injury. In conclusion, children with ADHD experience dental injuries more frequently than was previously described.