Incidence and Risk factors of dental injury in School children in Niigata city--Epidemiological study.

The incidence and risk factors of dental injury in elementary and junior high school children in Niigata city were investigated for 9 years (1999-2007) in this study. A total of 383,273 students were analyzed and 1262 dental injuries found, including 1029 cases (males: 672, females: 357) in elementary school; and 233 cases (males: 168, females: 65) in junior high school. The incidence of dental injury in elementary and junior high school was 0.41% and 0.18% respectively. The number of injuries did not increase over nine years. Tooth fractures were most frequently seen in second grade of elementary school, and decreased as the grade increased. More than 70% of dental injuries were due to collisions and falling. The present study suggests that students in lower grades of elementary school have a high risk of tooth injury, and an intensive preventive program is necessary for this age group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]