Molar Incisor Hypomineralisation Among Community-Dwelling Orphaned and Non-Orphaned Children in Benghazi, Libya

Background: Community-dwelling orphaned children are those who have lost one or both parents but remain in family-based care rather than institutions, and represent a group exposed to cumulative early-life biological and psychosocial adversity. Yet their oral health has received little attention in the dental literature. To compare MIH prevalence and clinical characteristics between orphaned and non-orphaned children in Benghazi, Libya, and to examine whether greater cumulative early-life adversity is linked to higher MIH prevalence. Methodology: A comparative cross-sectional study included 156 children aged 6–12 years in Benghazi, Libya (50 orphaned and 106 non-orphaned). Caregivers were interviewed to obtain demographic, socioeconomic, and early-life health information, and psychosocial functioning was assessed using the validated Arabic Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Two calibrated paediatric dentists assessed MIH according to EAPD criteria (intra-examiner к = 0.96; inter-examiner к = 0.90). MIH was defined as ≥1 affected permanent first molar, with or without incisor involvement. Groups were compared using Fisher's exact and Mann–Whitney U tests. Results: Eleven children (7.1%) met the MIH case definition. Prevalence was higher among orphaned than non-orphaned children (12.0% vs 4.7%), with a similar pattern for incisor involvement (5 vs 6). Early-life biological exposures did not differ significantly between groups. In contrast, orphaned children showed significantly higher SDQ total difficulties (15.28 ± 6.51 vs 8.89 ± 7.08, p < 0.001) and elevated scores across all four difficulty subscales (all p ≤ 0.001). Among affected surfaces, yellow/brown demarcated opacities predominated in orphaned children (56.5%), whereas white/creamy and yellow/brown opacities were equally common in non-orphaned children (34.8% each); lesion extent was comparable between groups. Conclusion: This preliminary study provides the prevalence and clinical characteristics of MIH among community-dwelling orphaned children in Libya. Although MIH prevalence was approximately twice as high in orphaned children, the difference was not statistically significant.