Title

Linking primate and interdental spaces to caries occurrence in primary dentition: A cross-sectional study

Authors

Sugandha Sharma*, Shalini Garg & Anil Gupta

Affiliation

Department of Paediatrics & Preventive Dentistry, Faculty of Dental Sciences SGT University, Gurugram, Haryana, India; *Corresponding author

Email

Sugandha Sharma - E-mail: sugandhasharma333@gmail.com
Shalini Garg - E-mail: garg124@gmail.com
Anil Gupta - E-mail: anilgupta@hotmail.com

Article Type

Research Article

Date

Received September 1, 2026; Revised September 30, 2026; Accepted September 30, 2026, Published September 30, 2026
 

Abstract

Closed primary dentition lacking physiologic or primate spaces creates tight contact points that restrict plaque removal, significantly increasing the risk of proximal dental caries. Therefore, it is of interest to assess the relationship between physiologic and primate spaces and caries occurrence in primary anterior teeth. A cross-sectional study of 100 preschool children aged 3–6 years from six schools assessed interdental and primate spaces and recorded DMFT and DMFS indices. Interdental spaces were present in 61% of children in the maxilla and 36% in the mandible, while primate spaces occurred in 73% and 29%, respectively. Caries occurrence was higher in spaced than non-spaced dentition for interdental spaces, but showed smaller differences for primate spaces in both arches. Caries occurrence was correlated with total DMFT, irrespective of whether the dentition was spaced or non-spaced.

Keywords

Preschool children, primary dentition, dental cavity

Citation

Sharma et al. Bioinformation 22(9): 6092-6095 (2026)

Edited by

Rashmi Laddha

ISSN

0973-2063

Publisher

Biomedical Informatics

License

This is an Open Access article which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. This is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License.