Innate Immunity Signatures of Early Childhood Caries (ECC) And Severe Early Childhood Caries (S-ECC)

Caries that affects children under the age of 6 is known as early childhood caries (ECC). According to the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD), ECC is defined as the presence of one or more teeth with caries (cavities or no cavities), missing teeth due to caries or the presence of restoration deciduous teeth in children under 71 months. If it occurred on the smooth surface of the tooth in children under 3 years of age, the disease is classified as severe early childhood caries (S-ECC). Streptococcus mutans plays important role in the etiology of caries of preschool children, which is a contagious pathological entity. The pathogen is an acidogenic and aciduric bacteria. The occurrence of caries is a complex process of interaction between host factors (teeth), microorganisms, substrates (carbohydrates) and the environment, including saliva. This mini review aims to summarize current findings on several markers of innate immune system related to ECC and S-ECC namely lysozyme, salivary lactoferrin, IL-8, CD36 of salivary neutrophils, and sCD14