title: Digital imaging of patterns of dental wear to diagnose bruxism in children.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare the area, perimeter, and form (D factor and fractal dimension) of the dental wear among bruxist and nonbruxist children with mixed dentition in order to determine if the dental wear may be used as criteria to diagnose bruxism.
  
  
  METHODS
  The children were 8 to 11 years old and were classified as bruxist or nonbruxist, according to anxiety level and temporomandibular disorders. Dental casts of the upper arch were obtained for the bruxist (n = 24) and the control (n = 29) group. The dental wear was measured in digital format and processed automatically. The complete and pathological dental wear was compared between the two groups, using the Student's t-test and Mann-Whitney test.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Statistically significant differences were observed between the two groups, with a higher area, perimeter, and more irregular form of the pathological dental wear among the bruxist group. Regarding complete dental wear, differences were only significant for the D factor (an un-dimensional quantitative parameter which produces a relation between the area and the perimeter of an object).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Digital imaging of dental wear may be used as criteria to diagnose bruxism in children with mixed dentition after making an analysis of the area, perimeter, and irregularity of the form of pathological dental wear.
authors.affiliation: CES-LPH Research Group, Faculty of Dentistry, Instituto de Ciencias de la Salud CES, Medellín, Colombia. rarestre@epm.net.co
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Restrepo
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Peláez
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Alvarez
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Paucar
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Abad
mesh_terms: D001007:Anxiety / Q000145:classification; D002012:Bruxism / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002648:Child; D003724:Dental Arch / Q000473:pathology; D003818:Dentition, Mixed; D005260:Female; D017709:Fractals; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008437:Maxilla / Q000473:pathology; D003765:Models, Dental; D009811:Odontometry; D013705:Temporomandibular Joint Disorders / Q000145:classification; D014070:Tooth / Q000473:pathology*; D014072:Tooth Abrasion / Q000473:pathology*