Fluorine concentration in water in rural parishes of canton Cuenca-Ecuador

Abstract

Introduction: Fluoride in drinking water has been shown to be effective against cavities, however, high exposure to fluoride is one of the main causes of dental fluorosis in children. Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the concentration of fluoride in drinking water to determine if it constitutes a risk factor for dental fluorosis in children in the rural sector of Cuenca-Ecuador. Methodology: The sampling was carried out in nine rural parishes of the canton, at three network points: (1) catchment tanks, (2) storage tanks of the purification system, and (3) the distribution system in schools, considering the seasonal period summer (dry season) or winter (rainy season). Fluoride determinations were made with the selective ion technique. Results: The results indicated that all the samples were below the concentration of 1.5 mg/L (WHO limit), in the ranges: 0.0–0.0565 mg/L in the collection tanks; 0.0–0.0440 mg/L in storage tanks; and 0.0–0.0525 mg/L in the distribution systems of educational institutions. The ANOVA test indicated that the parish and season variables influence the concentration of fluorides (p value <0.01). Conclusion: The result obtained in this study allowed drinking water to be ruled out as a cause for the development of dental fluorosis, a necessary result to investigate other reasons such as geographical conditions, diet, toothpaste, etc., since dental fluorosis constitutes a multifactorial problem.