Prevalence of Tooth Wear and Related Factors Among Arab Adults

Objectives: : The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of tooth wear and its related factors in six Arab countries.
Methods: This multinational cross-sectional study was conducted among 2924 participants aged between 18-35 years old from six Arab countries: UAE (N=480) , Kuwait (N=406), Oman (N=420), Egypt (N=793), Jordan (N=400) and Saudi Arabia (N=424). Participants completed a questionnaire before examination on the social implications of tooth wear. Trained and calibrated examiners used the Basic Erosive Wear Examination (BEWE) index to assess the severity of tooth wear on the buccal, occlusal and palatal/lingual surfaces of all teeth, apart from wisdom teeth under good lighting and a dry field. Each participant was characterized by the highest BEWE score. Statistical analysis examined the proportion of participants who scored 3 (hard tissue loss > 50% of the surface area) in relation to demographic and social/psychological factors
Results: The lowest BEWE score was 0 for 22 participants (0.8%), 1 for 437 (14.9%), 2 for 1276 (43.7%) and 3 for 1189 (40.6 %). There were large differences between countries in the prevalence of tooth wear with the highest observed in Oman. BEWE 3 was associated with significantly higher rating of pain intensity due to sensitive teeth (p=0.001). Logistic regression analysis showed that, BEWE score 3 was significantly associated with more likelihood to experience difficulties eating and feeling tense “once a day” compared to BEWE scores 0-2 (OR: 1.48, 95% CI:1.2, 1.8; OR:1.52, 95% CI:1.2, 1.91; p<0.001; respectively). In addition, eating/drinking more than 4-6 times per day was associated with increase in likelihood of having BEWE score 3 (OR: 2.18, 95% CI: 1.63. 3.33).
Conclusions: The prevalence of severe tooth wear among young Arab adults is high and the results underscore the association between tooth wear and socio-psychological factors.