title: Teething and affecting factors: experiences from Turkey.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The aim of this study was to investigate the experiences of Turkish mothers in teething period and the factors affecting teething.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study was performed by filling in questionnaire forms with a face-to-face interview technique with the mothers of 792 patients presenting to the outpatient clinics of pediatrics of Fatih (Turgut Ozal) University Faculty of Medicine between 1 April and 31 July 2012.
  
  
  RESULTS
  This study was conducted in a total of 792 children (mean age: 24.2±7.9, range 12-42 months; 430 males). Of the study population, 6.1% had a family history of premature teething, 9.7% had a family history of delayed teething, 98% had been breastfed, 91.9% had used vitamin D, 67.6% had used iron supplements, and 3.9% had fluorine use. The first teething was at 7.8±2.5 months and the first teeth to appear was the anterior lower incisor (58.7%). The symptoms the patients had during teething were irritability (64.9%), fever (64.1%), increased mastication (61.6%), increased salivation (58.2%), and diarrhea (45.6%). The rate of admission to a physician with these complaints was 19.6%. The factors affecting the teething time were a family history of premature or delayed teething and birth with natal tooth, and male gender.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In this study we found that nutritional or local factors were not effective on teething time. Teething period was characterized by nonspecific symptoms including irritability, subfebrile fever, increased mastication and salivation, and diarrhea. Linear regression analysis revealed that male gender and a family history of premature teething were the factors responsible from a shortening in teething time.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Turgut Özal University Medicine Faculty, Ankara, Turkey - aysesra@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Ayse E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Yilmaz
authors.forename: Guzide
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dogan
authors.forename: Ahmet Z
authors.initials: AZ
authors.lastname: Akelma
authors.forename: Musemma
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Karabel
authors.forename: Duran
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Karabel
authors.forename: Halise
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Akca
authors.forename: Emire A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Erdur
mesh_terms: D002675:Child, Preschool; D003967:Diarrhea / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D005334:Fever / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005461:Fluorine / Q000008:administration & dosage; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D058085:Iron Compounds / Q000008:administration & dosage; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008409:Mastication / Q000502:physiology; D009035:Mothers; D012737:Sex Factors; D012798:Sialorrhea / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors; D014078:Tooth Eruption; D014421:Turkey; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000008:administration & dosage
chemical_list: D058085:Iron Compounds; D014807:Vitamin D; D005461:Fluorine