Sleep bruxism in school-aged children – are tooth wear and orthodontic anomalies common risk factors?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.2478/AMB-2025-0044Keywords:
sleep bruxism, tooth wear, orthodontic anomalies, attritionAbstract
Sleep bruxism is a parafunction characterized by squeezing and/or grinding of the teeth. It occurs in both adults and children, and is associated with a wide variety of risk factors like harmful habits, tooth wear, orthodontic anomalies, psychological issues, etc. Aim: The aim of the present study is to investigate the prevalence and clinical characteristics of sleep bruxism in school-age children and its relationship with tooth wear and orthodontic anomalies. Materials and Methods: The object of the study are 262 children in 2 age groups: elementary scholars (aged 7-10) and middle scholars (aged 11-14). They underwent clinical examinations, which included registration of dental status, type, degree and prevalence of tooth wear and orthodontic malocclusions. Afterwards, the parents completed a questionnaire about the child’s general health, bruxism, harmful habits, etc. The results were statistically processed with SPSS-19. Results: Sleep bruxism was found in 22.1% of the examined children without predominance in any gender, but a slightly higher prevalence in the elementary school group. Tooth wear was registered in 70.6% of the examined patients. The registered orthodontic anomalies had almost the same frequency – 66.4%. None of the examined risk factors presented a significant relation with sleep bruxism. Conclusions: Sleep bruxism occurs in 1/5 of the examined children, but cannot be definitely related to tooth wear or orthodontic anomalies.
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