Maxillary labial frenum attachment in children of different age groups

Background: Labial frenum is a dynamic structure and is subject to variation in size, shape and position. The purpose of this cross sectional study is to examine the prevalence of various types of maxillary frenal attachments and its morphology in children. It can be gingival type, mucosal type, papillary type and papillary penetrating type. Materials and methods: A study involving 150 children between 0 to 12 years of age visiting a private hospital in Chennai were clinically examined for maxillary labial frenum attachment under direct visual method. Parents were provided with an informed consent. Demographic details including age and sex were recorded. Results: Total number of children who were examined were 150. The most prevalent frenal attachment among all is mucosal type followed by gingival type of attachment . 52.8% was mucosal type, 34.7% were gingival type, 9.8% was papillary type and 1.7% was papillary penetrating type. The prevalence type had no gender difference but the age had significant difference but the age had significant association. The occurrence of papillary penetrating type decreases with age. Conclusion: The prevalent type among children in Chennai is mucosal type. The papillary penetrating type decreases with age. The dentists should correlate the age of the child and type of frenal attachment during their clinical diagnosis to avoid misjudgement.