Prevalence of Dental Erosion: A 7-year comparative study

A cross sectional, comparative study of the prevalence and severity of dental erosion in all the workers employed by Zincor was carried out by Josie-Perez in 1996. The results of this study showed that dental erosion was an occupational hazard in this factory. In January 2003 the Division of Public Oral Health (Wits) was approached by Zincor to assess the effectiveness of previous recommendations to reduce prevalence and severity of dental erosion among workers seven years after the first study. Objectives: To compare the prevalence and severity of dental erosion among workers. Materials and Methods: This was a comparative cross-sectional, descriptive study. Data were collected by clinical examination and self-administered questionnaire, which was used to obtain demographic data and dietary habits. The grading recommended by Eccles and Jenkins (1974) was used to assess the prevalence and severity of dental erosion. The study was conducted between the 14 -18th July 2003. Five calibrated members of the dental team carried out the examinations. The workers were examined seated in a portable dental chair under light. Data was analyzed using Epi-Info 2002 and compared with previous results from 1996. Results: On the days of examination, 69 workers were assessed. This was less than the 103 recruited in the 1996 study. The average age of the workers was 35years (Range 23-56) versus 31.3 (range 20-60) and the mean length of service was 8 versus 4.2 years. Prevalence and severity of dental erosion for the comparative years (2003 versus 1996) was Grade O (84.1%vs 2.9%); Grade1 (14.5%vs 21.4%); Grade 2 (0 vs 61.2%); Grade 3 (1.4%vs 14.5%). There was a significant difference for all grades (p<0.05) Conclusion: The prevalence and severity of dental erosion has significantly been reduced over a 7-year period.