Chemotherapy, as a treatment method in paediatric oncology, coincides with the physiological process of tooth development. The interference between cytostatic agents and the cycle of the cells with specialised functions in the formation and mineralisation of dental structures leads to the appearance of abnormalities in the development of the tooth buds, structural defects and disorderly eruption. We have looked into the distribution of developmental tooth disorders in a group of children suffering from malignant ailments. The study reveals a high occurrence of microdontia and agenesis of premolars among children diagnosed with high-risk acute lymphoblastic leukemia at the age between 1 and 6, as well as tooth eruption disturbances in 70% of the children. The nature and the severity of dental abnormalities depend on the type of cytostatic medication, the dosage and the frequency of therapeutic cycles, the age of the child at the beginning of the oncological therapy, as well as on the stage of the odontogenesis.
Reviewers for Indian Journal of Medical and Paediatric Oncology
