Role of radiation factor in pediatric dental morbidity
The paper analyzes the data available in the literature on the influence of a radiation factor on the dental status and the level and pattern of dental morbidity in relation to the intensity of obtained radiation doses. It characterizes the changes occurring in tooth tissues and oral mucosa due to long-term exposure to small-dose radiation from the Chernobyl accident. Particular attention is given to the papers dealing with the possible pathogenetic mechanisms for organ and tissue damage upon chronic exposure to small-dose radiation — to the state of microbiocenosis, local immune defense, free radical processes, and antioxidant defense in the saliva, and the development of radiation hypersensitivity.