IADR Abstract Archives
Childhood Stress and Oral Health in Early Singapore Chinese Migrants
Objectives: The Bukit Brown Municipal Cemetery in Singapore was in use from 1922 to 1973, representing an ethnic Chinese migrant population from the late-19th to the mid-20th centuries. The aim of the study is to investigate the prevalence of enamel hypoplasia, caries, and calculus in the teeth of individuals exhumed during a road construction project. Enamel hypoplasia can provide a snapshot of childhood stress within the cemetery population, as these enamel defects occur during periods of physiological stress in early childhood. Likewise, the presence of caries and calculus can be an indicator of the level of oral health in the cemetery population.
Methods: A total of 107 individuals’ teeth have been assessed for enamel hypoplasia, caries, and calculus. Only permanent dentition was assessed. Each tooth was assessed macroscopically for each pathology and was then scored either as present or absent for the pathology. Teeth that were too deteriorated to present any pathology were excluded and individuals with no teeth that were able to be scored were excluded from the sample. For enamel hypoplasia, individuals without anterior teeth and premolars were also excluded. Prevalence was calculated based on the percentage of affected individuals out of the total number of individuals that could be assessed for each pathology.
Results: Of the 107 individuals assessed, 70.30% showed some enamel hypoplasia (affected/number assessed=71/101), 84.62% showed evidence of caries (a/n=44/52), and 85.96% demonstrated presence of calculus (a/n=49/57). Within our assessed sample, there was a high prevalence of all three pathologies. Notably, the prevalence for caries and calculus in our sample are very similar.
Conclusions: This preliminary investigation highlights elevated levels of childhood stress and poor oral health among our sample of the early Chinese migrants in Singapore. The study will continue to assess more samples and further research will be conducted to elicit more data regarding degree of pathology, differences by tooth types, age or gender differences and changes over time.
Methods: A total of 107 individuals’ teeth have been assessed for enamel hypoplasia, caries, and calculus. Only permanent dentition was assessed. Each tooth was assessed macroscopically for each pathology and was then scored either as present or absent for the pathology. Teeth that were too deteriorated to present any pathology were excluded and individuals with no teeth that were able to be scored were excluded from the sample. For enamel hypoplasia, individuals without anterior teeth and premolars were also excluded. Prevalence was calculated based on the percentage of affected individuals out of the total number of individuals that could be assessed for each pathology.
Results: Of the 107 individuals assessed, 70.30% showed some enamel hypoplasia (affected/number assessed=71/101), 84.62% showed evidence of caries (a/n=44/52), and 85.96% demonstrated presence of calculus (a/n=49/57). Within our assessed sample, there was a high prevalence of all three pathologies. Notably, the prevalence for caries and calculus in our sample are very similar.
Conclusions: This preliminary investigation highlights elevated levels of childhood stress and poor oral health among our sample of the early Chinese migrants in Singapore. The study will continue to assess more samples and further research will be conducted to elicit more data regarding degree of pathology, differences by tooth types, age or gender differences and changes over time.