Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Early childhood caries (ECC) remains one of the most prevalent diseases mutilating the primary dentition. It is a multifactorial disease that severely affects the quality of life of affected children. One of the risk indicators reported in the literature is the presence of viable mutans streptococci (MS) and protective factors such as salivary immunoglobulin A (SIgA). Hence, it is important to identify such risks and protective factors associated with ECC using simple yet reliable methods supported by advanced technology and a fully automated platform to improve the results. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective analysis was done on 40 children who were divided into two groups: group I (experimental) and group II (control). Group I comprised 30 healthy children who were further divided into three subgroups of 10 children each. Group IA with decayed, missing, filled teeth/decayed, extracted, filled teeth (dmft/deft) = 1-2, group IB with dmft/deft = 3-4, group IC with dmft/deft ≥5, and group II, comprising 10 healthy children having no caries by using World Health Organization (WHO) 2013 Oral Health Survey criteria. Unstimulated saliva was collected by drooling saliva into a sterile container. The samples were transported to the central research laboratory for SIgA by the immunoturbidimetry method by a fully automated Abbott Architect c system. The data obtained was subjected to statistical analysis. RESULTS: On comparison of SIgA in between varying severities of dental caries and caries-free children between age-group of 3 and 6 years, it was found to be below the grand median 0.20 mg/mL for subgroups IA and control group II. A significant negative statistical correlation (r = -0.948) was present between the SIgA and varying severities of ECC and the control group. INTERPRETATION AND CONCLUSION: The low dmft/deft group was found to be relatively closer to the caries-free groups as their mean dmft was 1.50, standard deviation (SD) ± 0.53. A slight change in dmft/deft score and SIgA could be used as a potential biomarker for assessing the severity of ECC in children between age-group of 3 and 6 years. HOW TO CITE THIS ARTICLE: Sharma V, Bagchi A, Dutta B, et al. Evaluation of Salivary Immunoglobulin A Level and Its Correlation with Severity of Early Childhood Caries: An Original Research. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2024;17(3):316-320.