Study finds families of orofacial clefting not at higher risk for dental anomalies

The International and American Associations for Dental Research (IADR/AADR) have announced the publication of a study titled "Spectrum of Dental Phenotypes in Nonsyndromic Orofacial Clefting," which is the largest international cohort to date of children with nonsyndromic clefts, their relatives and controls. 

Children with oral clefts show a wide range of dental anomalies, adding complexity to understanding the phenotypic spectrum of orofacial clefting. The evidence is mixed however on whether the prevalence of dental anomalies is elevated in unaffected relatives, and is mostly based on small samples.

The study characterizes the spectrum of cleft-related dental anomalies and evaluates whether families with clefting have a significantly higher risk for such anomalies compared to the general population. A total of 3,811 individuals were included with the breakdown being 660 cases with clefts, 1,922 unaffected relatives and 1,229 controls.

More dental studies: New research finds human tooth enamel development is linked to weaning

Dental anomalies were identified from in-person dental exams or intraoral photographs, and case-control differences were tested using Chi Square statistics. Cases had higher rates of dental anomalies in the maxillary arch than controls for primary and permanent dentitions but not in the mandible. Dental anomalies were more prevalent in cleft lip with cleft palate than other cleft types.

More anomalies were seen on the same side of the cleft. Failure of tooth formation and tooth displacements were the most common dental anomalies found in cases. Compared to controls, unaffected siblings and parents showed a trend for increased anomalies of the maxillary permanent dentition. Yet, these differences were non-significant after multiple-testing correction, suggesting genetic heterogeneity in some families carrying susceptibility to both overt clefts and dental anomalies.

Collectively, the findings suggest that most affected families do not have higher genetic risk for dental anomalies than the general population and that the higher prevalence of anomalies in cases is primarily a physical consequence of the cleft and surgical interventions.

More emerging research: New study finds potential alternative to antibiotics for treating dental disease

This study is available online here, and a companion podcast can be found here.

About the Journal of Dental Research

The IADR/AADR Journal of Dental Research, the journal for dental, oral and craniofacial research, is a multidisciplinary journal dedicated to the dissemination of new knowledge in all sciences relevant to dentistry and the oral cavity and associated structures in health and disease.

About the International Association for Dental Research

The International Association for Dental Research (IADR) is a nonprofit organization with more than 11,000 individual members worldwide, dedicated to: (1) advancing research and increasing knowledge for the improvement of oral health worldwide, (2) supporting and representing the oral health research community, and (3) facilitating the communication and application of research findings. The American Association for Dental Research (AADR) is the largest Division of IADR, with more than 3,600 members in the United States.