Periodontol 2000. 2015 Feb;67(1):34-57. doi: 10.1111/prd.12072.
Periodontal diseases are a group of infectious diseases that mainly include gingivitis and periodontitis. Gingivitis is the most prevalent form of periodontal disease in subjects of all ages, including children and adolescents. Less frequent types of periodontal disease include aggressive periodontitis, acute necrotizing ulcerative gingivitis and various diseases of herpesviral and fungal origin. This review aimed to retrieve relevant information from Latin America on the prevalence of periodontal diseases among children and adolescents of the region. Gingivitis was detected in 35% of young Latin American subjects and showed the highest frequencies in Colombia (77%) and Bolivia (73%) and the lowest frequency in Mexico (23%). The frequency of gingivitis in subjects from other Latin American countries was between 31% and 56%. Periodontitis may affect <10% of the young population in Latin America, but the data are based on only a few studies. A more precise assessment of the distribution and severity of periodontal disease in children and adolescents of Latin America may help policy makers and dentists to institute more effective public health measures to prevent and treat the disease at an early age to avoid major damage to the permanent dentition.
牙周病是一组传染病，主要包括牙龈炎和牙周炎。牙龈炎是各年龄段人群（包括儿童和青少年）中最常见的牙周病形式。较少见的牙周病类型包括侵袭性牙周炎、急性坏死性溃疡性牙龈炎和各种疱疹病毒和真菌性疾病。本综述旨在从拉丁美洲检索有关该地区儿童和青少年牙周病患病率的相关信息。在 35%的年轻拉丁美洲人群中发现了牙龈炎，哥伦比亚（77%）和玻利维亚（73%）的发病率最高，墨西哥（23%）的发病率最低。其他拉丁美洲国家的发病率在 31%至 56%之间。牙周炎可能影响不到 10%的拉丁美洲年轻人群，但这些数据仅基于少数几项研究。更精确地评估拉丁美洲儿童和青少年牙周病的分布和严重程度，可能有助于决策者和牙医制定更有效的公共卫生措施，以在早期预防和治疗这种疾病，避免对恒牙造成严重损害。
