Examining dentinal carious lesions as a predisposing factor for the oral prevalence of Candida spp in HIV-infected children.
OBJECTIVE
The aims of this study were to verify the oral prevalence of Candida spp in HIV-infected children, and investigate the association between Candida colonization and dentinal caries lesions.


METHODS
Whole stimulated saliva was collected from 62 HIV-infected children (group 1) and 40 seronegative siblings (group 2), followed by oral examination to determine: dmft/dmfs scores, DMFT/DMFS scores, the number of dentinal carious teeth (D+) and the presence of oral candidiasis. The salivary samples were cultured, and plates with positive isolation (G+) were classified as mild growth, moderate growth, and strong growth. Data was analyzed using chi-square, Mann-Whitney, and Spearman tests for correlations.


RESULTS
The patients' mean age was 8.8 for group 1 and 8.0 years for group 2. In group 1, 61% of the subjects had AIDS. Eighty percent of HIV-infected children (N=50) were positive for Candida growth, having a mean CD4% of 22, those who were Candida-free (N=12) presented a mean CD4% of 21. Correlation was observed between the mean D+ and G+ in groups 1 and 2 (P<.05, Mann-Whitney test), but not between the mean dmft/dmfs-DMFT/DMFS in group 1 (P>.05, Mann-Whitney test). Association of G+ and the D+ was noted in group 1 (P<.05; chi-square test). Positive correlation between high Candida counts and an increase in D+ was demonstrated in groups 1 and 2 (P<.05).


CONCLUSIONS
Dentinal carious lesions may be associated with Candida spp colonization in HIV-infected children.
Cerqueira
Daniella Ferraz
DF
Department of Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics, School of Dentistry, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. daniellefc@terra.com.br
Portela
Maristela Barbosa
MB
Pomarico
Luciana
L
Soares
Rosangela Maria de Araújo
RM
de Souza
Ivete Pomarico Ribeiro
IP
Castro
Gloria Fernanda
GF
D000293:Adolescent; D002175:Candida / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D002180:Candidiasis, Oral / Q000150:complications*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004245:DMF Index; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000150:complications*; D003804:Dentin / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000473:pathology; D004198:Disease Susceptibility; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D018445:Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical; D008297:Male; D012463:Saliva / Q000382:microbiology; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric