Dark Stain Has Any Effect on Swimmers' Caries Experience?

Objectives: To determine the dark stain and its relation to DMF in young swimmers. The dark stain was brown or black in color, hard in texture and tightly adhered on enamel. Gas-chlorination in swimming pools may be responsible for this staining. Methods: Two swimming schools were randomly chosen in Istanbul. Three calibrated dentists examined 122 (54 female, 68 male) swimmers aged 8-21 years old (mean; 8.21) (Kappa: 7.3). The mean age of swimmers with stain was 13.37 (17 female, 20 male). The stains were diagnosed during examination by visual and tactile criteria’s. In caries risk assessment d0, d1, d2, d3, d4 values were obtained. The statistical evaluation was based on the obtained results of criteria on the questionnaires. Results: The average swimming years were 5.75 and the average hours in a week was 10.26. The average swimming years for the ones with stain was 6.2 and the average hours in a week was 14.23, but except four swimmers who have been swimming for one or two years. The number of swimmers with stain was 37, 30.3%. The DMF and dmf of the population were 2.54 and 0.83 and with stain were 3.51 and 0.44. The stains were mostly observed at the maxillary and mandible incisors’ cervical. #31 was the mostly observed tooth with stain (14.7%); #33, #43 were the least ones. Conclusions: This study indicated a possibility of dental staining in children who swim professionally for 6 years and 14 hours in a week. There was no statically correlation between DMF/dmf and stained plaque.