THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BOTTLE USAGE CONTENT, AGE, AND NUMBER OF TEETH WITH MUTANS STREPTOCOCCI COLONIZATION IN 6-24-MONTH-OLD CHILDREN/

Objectives: Mutans streptococci (MS) are the primary pathogens involve d in the development of early childhood caries. However, factors that may affect their acquisition in the mouths of young children are not w ell understood, and the period of initial colonization remains controv ersial. This study investigated the relationship of age, number of tee th, and bottle usage/content with regard to the isolation of MS in 6-2 4-month-old children. Methods: A total of 122 children from low-income families attending a nutritional supplement program, and their mother s, participated in this study. Children were examined for dental carie s and number of erupted teeth and were sampled for MS. Mothers were ad ministered a questionnaire to obtain details of baby bottle use, inclu ding what food items were put in the bottle during the last week. Resu lts: MS was detected in more than one-third of the 6-24-month-olds. Un like some studies that suggest a later period of infectivity, approxim ately 20% of children under 14 months of age, including 4 of 22 infant s aged 6-9 months, were colonized with MS. When examined separately, a ge, number of teeth, and bottle usage/content were each found to be re lated to the presence of MS. Mutans streptococci colonization was more likely with increasing age and number of teeth, and children whose bo ttles contained sweetened beverages were more likely to be colonized t han children whose bottles contained milk. Logistic regression models that controlled for both age and number of teeth indicated that childr en who consumed sweetened beverages in their baby bottle had a statist ically significant, four-fold increase in the odds of colonization by MS relative to children who consumed milk. Conclusions: The finding th at approximately 20% of the children under 14 months of age were infec ted with MS indicates that colonization in this sample of low-income p reschool children may begin earlier than suggested by some investigati ons. Additionally, the risk of MS colonization appears lower among inf ants who consume milk rather than sweetened beverages in the bottle.