Aim

To determine the changes in the sequence and age of eruption of permanent teeth in 5–15-year-old schoolchildren, correlating their dental and chronological age.

Materials and methods

A total of 1,477 schoolchildren aged between 5 years and 15 years were examined for the eruption timing, body mass index (BMI), and other oral findings. Dental age was calculated for 10% of the total sample using the Willem's method from their ortho-pento graphs (OPGs) and correlated with their chronological age.

Results

The maxillary teeth erupted earlier than mandibular teeth. Males were found to mature earlier than females. The sequence of eruption observed was: males (maxilla) 1-6-2-4-3-5-7 and (mandible) 1-6-2-3-4-5-7; females (maxilla) 6-1-2-4-3-5-7 and (mandible) 1-6-2-3-4-5-7. The chronological age and the dental age were found to be different in the age range of 9–10 years female; 10–11 years male; and in 13–14 years both male and female. Also when the dental age was correlated with the BMI, the dental age of obese children in 5–6 years and underweight children in 10–11 years were found to be far ahead of their actual chronological age.

Conclusion

This study opens an expected door for a large sample size to be tested in various local populations with different ethnicity and race as there can be changing trend in the eruption pattern.