Medicines can weaken children’s teeth, study says

posted on 12/02/2022 10:17

(credit: PikFree/Reproduction)

The use of medications in the first years of life can change the composition of tooth enamel and increase the chances of tooth pain, sensitivity and stains. So says a study published by the University of São Paulo (USP) in the scientific journal Scientific Reports.

According to pediatric dentist Ilana Marques, from IGM Odontopediatria, professionals who treat children’s teeth have noticed an increase in enamel malformations and defects for some time. Therefore, several theories try to understand the causes of this problem.

“Taking into account this doubt about the influence of medications, they decided to carry out this research on rats, which showed that in the teeth of rats there was a change in the resistance of these teeth. Based on this study, new studies are being planned to prove or not that it has the same effect on human teeth”, says Marques.

Dentists from the Faculty of Dentistry of Ribeirão Preto (FORP-USP) noticed that patients’ complaints were, in most cases, typical of defects in the development of tooth enamel. According to the pediatric dentist, enamel works as a protective layer for the inner structure of the teeth.

Using this protection can cause problems such as frequent cavities. “Depending on the degree of malformation, if there is no strict monitoring by the pediatric dentist, as well as strict control by the parents in terms of hygiene, nutrition, use of fluoridated pastes and mainly monitoring with the dentist, they can be big, from minor concerns to severe pain and tooth loss,” says Ilana.

The first enamel defects tend to develop in childhood, when the use of anti-inflammatory medications is also more common, especially to control fever.
According to Francisco de Paula-Silva, professor in the Children’s Clinic Department at FORP-USP, it is also in the first years of life that children tend to use more anti-inflammatory drugs, to relieve conditions such as fever, for example.

According to the study authors, some common childhood diseases are generally treated with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which work by inhibiting the activity of cyclooxygenase (COX) enzymes and the production of the prostaglandin enzyme, whose levels are elevated.

“However, we know that cyclooxygenases and prostaglandins are physiological for tooth enamel, which led us to ask whether these drugs were interfering with the course of the normal formation of this structure”, explains Francisco de Paula-Silva, professor in the Department of Practice Clinical. Infantil at FORP-USP and one of the authors of the research.

The investigation lasted 28 days and was carried out in mice, which received anti-inflammatory drugs such as celecoxib and indomethacin. After the experiment, no differences were observed with the naked eye in the teeth, but chemical and imaging tests showed that they had less calcium and phosphate, substances important for the formation of tooth enamel.

As a result, the authors of the study came to the conclusion that, in some way, treatment with medications affects the composition of tooth enamel. Now, to confirm the discovery, dentists at FORP-USP intend to start investigating children with defects in tooth enamel and check if there is any connection with the medications they use.

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