Late Eruption of Mandibular Central Incisor in Small-for-Gestational-Age Infants: A Cohort Study

Purpose: To evaluate the chronology of the eruption of primary mandibular central incisors in infants born preterm and with low weight (PLBW) and its association with weight/length ratio for gestational age (GA) at birth, individual characteristics and hospitalization at birth. Methods: A cohort of 46 infants was followed at a multidisciplinary reference center at a university hospital in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. The inclusion criteria were infants born preterm with low/very low/extreme low birth weight and at least four months of age. Oral clinical examinations were carried out by a calibrated dentist for a total of eight months, with a one -month interval between each examination, to verify the chronology of eruption of the primary mandibular central incisors. Caregivers completed a sociodemographic and health questionnaire. Data on neonatal hospitalization were collected from medical records. Data were analyzed with the Kaplan -Meier method and log rank test, and bivariate analysis was done using the Mann -Whitney method and Kruskal-Wallis test ( P<0.05). Results: The average age at eruption of primary lower central incisors was 11 months for both sexes. No association was found between tooth eruption and child hospitalization or individual characteristics ( P>0.05). Infants large for gestational age had earlier tooth eruption (9.3 +/- 1.41 months) than infants small for gestational age (13.6 +/- 3.29 months; P<0.05). Conclusion: The most likely age for the eruption of the first primary teeth in infants born preterm and with low weight was 11 months, and there was no influence of individual characteristics and hospitalization at birth. Small -for -gestational age infants experienced delayed tooth eruption compared to large -for -GA infants.