RT - Journal of Clinical Pediatric Dentistry ID - 10.22514/jocpd.2024.080 T1 - Secular changes in dental development of Korean children aged 4 to 16 years over a 10-year period A1 - Seung-Hwan Ong A1 - Insoon Chang A1 - Hyuntae Kim A1 - Ji-Soo Song A1 - Teo Jeon Shin A1 - Hong-Keun Hyun A1 - Ki-Taeg Jang A1 - Young-Jae Kim K1 - Dental maturity; Dental development; Forensic odontology; Secular change YR - 2024 SP - 68 AB -
This study evaluated 10-year secular changes in dental maturity and dental development among Korean children. A retrospective analysis of panoramic radiograph samples from Korean children (4–16 years old) taken in 2010 and 2020 was conducted. The 2010 group consisted of 3491 radiographs (1970 boys and 1521 girls), and the 2020 group included 5133 radiographs (2825 boys and 2308 girls). Using Demirjian’s method, dental maturity scores and dental developmental stages were assessed. For intra-observer reliability, Weighted Cohen’s kappa was used, and Mann-Whitney U tests were performed to compare the 2020 and 2010 groups. A slight acceleration in dental maturity was observed in both boys and girls, with the difference being more noticeable in boys at an earlier age. Statistically significant differences were noted at ages 4, 5 and 7 for boys, and at age 6 for girls. Despite these differences, the individual dental development stages of 2020 and 2010 showed inconsistent trends with limited differences. Generally, girls demonstrate more advanced dental maturity than boys. A slight acceleration in Korean children’s dental maturity was observed over a 10-year period when comparing the 2020 groups to the 2010 groups.