A study conducted by researchers at the University of São Paulo has found that anti-inflammatory drugs may be associated with dental enamel defects (DED) in children.
Their research into this condition, which is estimated to affect approximately 20% of children globally, “studied the effects of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) on the biomineralisation of enamel in male mice” and found that after four weeks of exposure to NSAIDs celecoxib and indomethacin that teeth showed “decreased levels of calcium and phosphate and lower mineral density, and they fractured more easily”.
The results of the research, triggered by an intriguing possible correlation between the timing of DED in the first years of a child’s life and the administration of anti-inflammatory drugs to combat sickness during this period, promise increased understanding of the prevalence of DED in children, says corresponding study author Dr Francisco Paula-Silva, an associate professor of paediatric dentistry at the university.
“Right now, the study at least offers us a clue to the identity of a new player that may be involved in the development of DEDs. Hitherto we’ve been totally in the dark.”
The researchers next intend to conduct a clinical study which it is hoped will play a role in determining appropriate treatment protocols for administration of anti-inflammatory drugs in children.
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