Dubai: A new study in the UAE has measured the teeth of several hundred Emiratis to boost the emirate’s level of orthodontic treatment.
The study, which saw 521 dental casts taken from Emirati patients, found one main conclusion: that there are no significant differences between Emirati teeth and other Caucasian populations.
The Dubai Health Authority (DHA), the emirate’s health-care regulator, led the study.
“The aim of the study is to measure the overall and anterior tooth size ratios in a group of Emiratis with Class I normal occlusion,” said Dr Moza Mohammad, a DHA orthodontic specialist.
Since teeth characteristics vary between ethnic and race groups, he said it was important to identify them for Emiratis.
The specialist said that conducting this analysis on Emiratis is important because there is no existent relevant data currently available.
“Our findings indicated that there are no differences between the dimensions and relationships of the permanent teeth of Emiratis and those of other Caucasian populations, namely North Americans, for which diagnostic standards have been developed and used in our profession many years ago,” said the specialist.
This means that the existing relevant diagnostic tests can be used for the Emirati population without any adjustment or adaptation.
