Usage of Fluoridated toothpaste in children and Fluorosis of permanent teeth

Objective: To determine the usage of fluoridated toothpaste in children and the presence of fluorosis in permanent teeth. Study Design: Descriptive cross-sectional study. Place and Duration: This study was undertaken in Hayatabad Model School Hayatabad Peshawar, from 1st March, 2022 to 31st October, 2022. Methodology: Eighty (N=80) school going children of both genders from 11-16 years age with healthy and vital teeth were included in this study. Children with chronic diseases were excluded from this study. Ingestion of childhood fluoride toothpaste and degree of fluorosis was recorded by using a questionnaire. Fluorosis was graded on basis of clinical examination by Dean Index. The data was analyzed using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 20. Numerical variables were presented as mean and standard deviation whereas categorical variables were mentioned as numbers and percentages. Results: Mean age of children was 13.15 with 71.25% females (n=57) and 28.75% (n=23) males. 40.6% children (n=65) had dental fluorosis. Majority of children had mild fluorosis 65% (n=52), followed by moderate fluorosis (12.5%, n=10) and severe fluorosis (3.8%, n=3). 36.3% of the children ingested toothpaste in their early childhood (n=29) whereas 63.7% did not ingest tooth paste (n=51). Conclusion: Dental fluorosis is more common in those children who have a history of ingestion of fluoride tooth paste in their childhood. Keywords: Dental Fluorosis, Fluoride, Dental Caries, Dean Index, Childhood, Tooth Paste, Community Water Fluoridation.