Nursing-bottle syndrome caused by prolonged drinking from vessels with bill-shaped extensions

On investigating 186 infants between the ages of one and six with carious d estruction of the maxillary primary incisors, it was learned which risk fac tors were responsible for the condition known as nursing bottle syndrome. One hundred and twenty-eight infants (68.8 percent) were given a nursing bo ttle, twelve (6.5 percent) a feeding cup or other bottles with bill-shaped extensions, and forty-one (22.0 percent) both a nursing bottle and vessels with bill-shaped extensions; in all cases the feeding was excessive and pro longed beyond the first year of life. An additional five infants (2.7 perce nt) were breast-fed excessively beyond the first year. The results confirm the risk of tooth destruction, typical of nursing bottl e syndrome, by prolonged and frequent consumption of cariogenic beverages f rom vessels with bill-shaped extensions. It is important, therefore, that a warning regarding the dental health hazards of such feeding methods be iss ued.