Introduction: Pathological tooth wear in children with primary dentition can be a result of various harmful habits, risk factors and nocturnal bruxism. It is difficult to be distinguished from physiological tooth wear. Aim:To study caries prevalence, tooth wear prevalence, its clinical characteristics and its relationship with bruxism in children aged 3 - 7 years. Materials and methods: The object of the study are 222 children, divided into 5 age groups - from 3 to 7 years. The examined children underwent a clinical examination, during which the following were registered: dental status, caries prevalence, the type, degree and prevalence of tooth wear. Information on the presence and characteristics of nocturnal bruxism in the examined children was obtained from the parents. The results were statistically processed with SPSS-19. Results: Tooth wear is found in more than 2/3 of the examined children (P<0.05). The highest average number of abraded teeth is present in 6- and 7-year-old children - about 7. Tooth abrasion affects 75% of canine teeth, 37.6% of incisors and 11.8% of molars in children aged 3-7 years. The predominant severity of wear is that in the inner ½ of the enamel (degree 1b) and occurs in 41.7% of children (P<0.05). 1/3 of the examined children have nocturnal bruxism (P<0.05). In almost 90% of them, tooth wear was found (P<0.05). Conclusions: There is an increase in the severity of tooth abrasion with age in children between 3-7 years. Nocturnal bruxism is almost always accompanied by tooth wear.

Objectives: The aim of this study is to assess the impact of screen time on the incidence of sleep bruxism in children during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: The parents of 266 children, aged 3–14 years, participated in the present study. They were provided with a 36-item questionnaire in order to collect data about their child’s personal information, general health, sleep bruxism, and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on them. The collected data were analyzed statistically using a chi-square (χ²) test, ANOVA with post hoc analysis (Tukey’s HSD), and a t-test. Results: Screen time increased significantly during the pandemic, especially among children using screens ≥180 min/day. The proportion of children spending 180–360 min/day doubled to 24.4%. Lower secondary school children had the highest screen time, with an increase of ~60 min/day during the pandemic. Smartphones were the most used device (50.8%), and on average, children with bruxism spent 32 min longer in front of screens than children without bruxism (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Daily screen use is common in children, and this increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. Children with sleep bruxism exhibit longer screen time than those without bruxism, suggesting that the former is a potential risk factor for the latter.

Introduction: In 2020, the global pandemic of COVID-19 significantly affected our daily lives. The youngest students were most affected due to the establishment of distance education, which is associated with social isolation and increased screen time. Aim:To investigate the prevalence and specific risk factors for sleep bruxism associated with the COVID-19 pandemic in children aged 7-10 years, their eating habits and physical activity. Materials and methods: The object of the study are 267 children aged 7-10 years. The examined children underwent a clinical examination, during which the following were registered: dental status and attrition, oral hygiene and orthodontic status. Anamnestic data on nocturnal bruxism, physical activity, dietary habits, and screen exposure were obtained from 241 parents via a questionnaire. The results were statistically processed with SPSS-19. Results: The frequency of bruxism in children aged 7-10 is 21.4% (p<0.05). No increase in its frequency or intensity was found during the pandemic in the studied groups. The average increase in screen exposure during the pandemic was more than 60 minutes per day (p<0.05). In 1/4 of the children, physical activity during the pandemic decreased (p<0.05). In 21.6% of the examined children, the intake of simple carbohydrates increased (p<0.05). Conclusions: Bruxism is a common condition in school-aged children. The restrictive measures during the COVID-19 pandemic have led to a rise in some risk factors for bruxism oral and general health of children aged 7-10 years by increasing their screen exposure, consumption of simple carbohydrates and decreasing their physical activity.

Oral health education is a fundamental component of preventive dentistry, but children’s engagement across different educational approaches remains an important area of investigation. This study aimed to comparatively evaluate observed behavioural engagement associated with interactive, demonstrational, and game-based educational approaches among school-age children. A pilot, school-based comparative observational study was conducted among 60 second-grade students at a primary school in Sofia, Bulgaria. A standardized 40 min educational session included three approaches: interactive PowerPoint presentations, demonstrations with dental models and visual tools, and game-based activities emphasizing toothbrushing skills and dietary habits. Children’s engagement was assessed using three indicators: active participation and willingness to engage, confidence, and interaction with the educational materials. The game-based approach demonstrated the highest proportion of children classified in the “Very High” engagement category across all indicators. The average proportion of “very high” performance was 63.4% for the game-based approach, compared with 27.8% for the demonstrational approach and 22.8% for the interactive approach. Children participating in game-based activities demonstrated higher observed levels of participation, confidence, and interaction with educational materials. Game-based educational activities were associated with higher observed engagement during oral health education. These findings highlight the potential value of game-based activities for engaging children in oral health education. Further research using randomized designs, validated assessment instruments, and independent observers is needed to determine whether these differences in observed engagement are reproducible.

Sleep bruxism is a parafunction characterized by squeezing and/or grinding of the teeth. It occurs in both adults and children, and is associated with a wide variety of risk factors like harmful habits, tooth wear, orthodontic anomalies, psychological issues, etc. Aim: The aim of the present study is to investigate the prevalence and clinical characteristics of sleep bruxism in school-age children and its relationship with tooth wear and orthodontic anomalies. Materials and Methods: The object of the study are 262 children in 2 age groups: elementary scholars (aged 7-10) and middle scholars (aged 11-14). They underwent clinical examinations, which included registration of dental status, type, degree and prevalence of tooth wear and orthodontic malocclusions. Afterwards the parents completed a questionnaire about the child’s general health, bruxism, harmful habits, etc. The results were statistically processed with SPSS-19. Results: Sleep bruxism was found in 22.1% of the examined children without predominance in any gender but a slightly higher prevalence in the elementary school group. Tooth wear was registered in 70.6% of the examined patients. The registered orthodontic anomalies had almost the same frequency – 66.4%. None of the examined risk factors presented significant relation with sleep bruxism. Conclusions: Sleep bruxism occurs in 1/5 of the examined children but cannot be definitely related with tooth wear or orthodontic anomalies.

Tooth wear is usually a physiological prоcess with multifactorial etiology. When it happens rapidly and causes visual or physical changes in the orofacial region, it becomes pathological tooth wear, which can be found in children also. Some of the risk factors that can contribute to the loss of tooth structure are bruxism, specific eating factors, orthodontic anomalies, etc. Aim The aim of the present study is to investigate the incidence and clinical characteristics of tooth wear in school-aged children and its association with orthodontic abnormalities. Material and Methods The object of the study are 262 children in 2 age groups - in elementary school (aged 7-10) and in middle school (aged 11-14). The examined children underwent a clinical examination, during which the following were registered: dental status, type, degree and prevalence of tooth wear and orthodontic malocclusions. After the examination, the parents of the examined children filled a questionnaire about the child’s general health, eating habits, bruxism, harmful habits, etc. The results were statistically processed with SPSS-19. Results Loss of tooth structures was found in 70.6% of the examined children without predominance in any of the sexes. The registered orthodontic anomalies had almost the same frequency – 66.4%, with a statistically significant correlation between the two examined findings. Conclusions Loss of tooth structure is common in the examined children and a statistical dependence was found between it and the presence of orthodontic anomalies.