Posteruptive age dependency of cariogenic changes in enamel of permanent teeth of children.

During a cariogenic attack at the enamel surface a white spot can be formed (initiation) or disappear (regression) or remain the same (stabilisation). In the present clinical study it was shown that at least regression and stabilisation depend significantly on the posteruptive age and may be associated therefore with changes in porosity or mineral composition in the young enamel surface after eruption. In contrast, the progression of a white spot towards a cavity, which took place in this study almost exclusively in the fissures, does not change with posteruptive age. An explanation for this may be that in such white spots remineralization is less effective due to retention of acids in the fissures. On the other hand, rapid development of a cavity from sound enamel within half a year decreased with posteruptive age.