Correlation between characteristics of saliva and caries resistance
Down syndrome (DS) is a genetic disorder caused by a trisomy of chromosome 21 with an incidence of 1: 800 to 1:1000 births. In India, it has been reported that the incidence of Down’s syndrome occurs in 1 per 700 births. The syndrome is characterized mainly by mental retardation, cardiovascular, hematopoietic, and musculoskeletal and nervous system anomalies, as well as other phenotypic abnormalities. Numerous oral manifestations have been describedin DS individuals including low incidence of dental caries, high incidence ofperiodontal diseases, mouth breathing resulting in dry mouth, fissured tongueand lips, high incidence of mucosal ulcers, candidiasis and acute necrotizingulcerative gingivitis. Children with Down syndrome may have different dental characteristics such as congenitally missing teeth and microdontia. Often, the teeth are in Angle’s class III relationship with posterior cross bites due to underdeveloped midfacial region. The tongue has deep fissures and a...