Neonatal and childhood teeth in relation to perinatal exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls and dibenzofurans: observations of the Yucheng children in Taiwan

In order to determine the effect of perinatal polychlorinated biphenyls and dibenzofurans (PCBs/PCDFs) exposure on neonatal and childhood teeth in Yucheng children, we carried out complete dental examinations on 73 Yucheng children born to mothers who ingested high levels of PCBs/PCDFs and 75 matched controls, aged 7–11 years, in 1992. Ten of 73 (10%) exposed children were reported to have borne teeth during the neonatal period, while none of the controls did. The exposed group also had a significantly higher percentage of teeth with congenitally missing tooth germ compared to the controls (29 vs 2.7%) or rotation (19 vs 2.7%). The percentages of developmental defects increased significantly with increasing maternal serum PCB levels, childhood PCB and PCDF levels, and the duration of breast feeding. The maternal PCB level clearly played a more important role in an increased risk of neonatal teeth and developmental defects. The defects were apparent from the lowest tertile, with a total PCB level of <10 ppb in maternal serum measured nearest to childbirth. The number of permanent teeth tended to be less in exposed children than in the control group from the age of 11years onwards. Our present study has demonstrated for the first time a dose-response relationship between perinatal PCBs/PCDFs exposure and dental defects.