Pustaka Ilmiah Universitas Padjadjaran

Abstrak

The Relationship Between Birth Weight And Enamel Defect Probability In Children With Prenatal Malnutrition

The growth and development of the teeth is a part of the whole body growth, and it might be affected by the interaction of genetic and environmental factors. The growth and development of the teeth is a complex and long lasting process, and it is a sensitive period against intrinsic as well as extrinsic factors of disturbances.1,2 The disturbances might happen in various phase/stage of teeth development with various intensity and period. This might result as the defect of teeth development i.e. enamel or dentin defects according to the disturbed tissues. Enamel defect means incompleted enamel that was caused by systemic environmental factors during prenatal or postnatal period. The critical growth and development of deciduous teeth occurs in perinatal period, while the critical phase of permanent teeth is in the postnatal period.2,4 Enamel defects include enamel hypoplasia and hypocalcification. Hypoplasia is caused by the disturbance of enamel matrix, while hypocalcification is caused by the disturbance disturbance of mineralization, and enamel maturation. According to ADA (Australian Dental Association), there are several factors that are related to the defects such as maternal factors, drugs during pregnancy, premature low birth weight, infection, malnutrition, and trauma.5 Prenatal factors that might cause defect of the teeth development are mostly maternal such as severe infection during pregnancy, malnutrition of the mother, mother’s metabolic disorders, besides child’s factor such as low birth weight.