Occlusal characteristics in cerebral palsy patients.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the occlusal characteristics of 104 randomly selected, noninstitutionalized patients with a medical diagnosis of cerebral palsy (CP).
Methods: Patients were grouped according to the CP motor disorder and clinical patterns. Occlusal characteristics were collected by one examiner. Nonparametric statistical tests, including Fisher's exact test (P) and chi-square test were used.
Results: The results showed that Class II molars were statistically higher (P<.05) for spastic patients. Anterior open bite and an increased overjet were significant (P<.01) in spastic patients with clinical patterns of quadriplegia, double-hemiplegia, and diplegia. Double hemiplegia patients presented a higher incidence of open bite (64%) with an edge-to-edge overjet (45%). A deep overbite was presented in athetoid (50%) and ataxic (67%) patients. A high incidence of tooth wear was observed in the athetoid group (54%).
Conclusion: Spastic patients presented a high incidence of open bite and Class II malocclusion. A low level of malocclusion was observed in the ataxic group compared to the other groups studied. Further studies would be useful to determine if neurological injuries can be the cause of changes of the craniofacial growth and development patterns resulting in malocclusion in cerebral palsy patients.