Dental Dysplasia Related to Malnutrition, with Special Reference to Melanodontia and Odontoclasia

¹ Institute of Dental Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland

1. A corollary dental and nutritional survey, using WHO and FAO standard technics, of the school population of French Polynesia including 12,000 children revealed the incidence of two types of dental dysplasias related to malnutrition: odontoclasia in the deciduous dentition and "yellow teeth" in the permanent one, both proving highly susceptible to rampant decay. A third dysplastic condition, called by the French "infantile melanodontia," was occasionally found in the deciduous teeth of Chinese, whereas mottled enamel was observed in the remarkably caries-resistant children of distant islands who still adhere to the traditional food habits.

2. Preliminary results of a comparative histological, histochemical, and microradiographical analysis of deciduous teeth affected with melanodontia, odontoclasia, and circular caries have been presented. Evidence was offered that melanodontia is a form of tooth decay in which decalcification process and bacterial invasion are restricted, probably conditioned by structural peculiarities, whereas odontoclasia refers to a form of rampant caries affecting hypoplastic enamel.

3. The need for classifying the different forms of dental caries on the basis of a multidisciplinary assessment is stressed.