{"id":7949,"date":"2026-08-19T22:45:31","date_gmt":"2026-08-19T18:45:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nbdental.ge\/shavi-nadebi-kbilebze-black-stain\/"},"modified":"2026-09-23T11:21:25","modified_gmt":"2026-09-23T07:21:25","slug":"shavi-nadebi-kbilebze-black-stain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nbdental.ge\/en\/shavi-nadebi-kbilebze-black-stain\/","title":{"rendered":"Black Deposits on Teeth – Black Stain (Priestley’s Stain)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In English-language literature it is referred to as Black Stain –<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Close-up<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

black spots, a black line. These are very common in pediatric dentistry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is diagnosed when the patient has<\/p>\n\n\n\n

a black line about 1 millimeter wide on the teeth, along the gums.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This black color may also appear as dots or spots on the tongue-side and palate-side surfaces. Black stain appears in early childhood, peaks in puberty and adolescence, and may also occur in adults.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Etiology (cause)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Black stain is caused by anaerobic chromogenic bacteria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The main culprits are actinomycetes (the gram-positive bacteria Actinomyces israelii and Actinomyces naeslundii), which produce hydrogen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Less common causes are gram-negative bacteria: Porphyromonas and Prevotella melaninogenica.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For a long time, authors linked the black color of this stain to melanin and iron sulfate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Research has shown that the black pigment known as Black Stain is an iron deposit on the tooth surface, formed by a chemical interaction between hydrogen sulfide and iron in saliva.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hydrogen sulfide is formed through the action of anaerobic bacteria, actinomycetes, which in turn produce hydrogen. The proportion of hydrogen may vary between individuals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iron can enter saliva through food or when the gums bleed. Studies have shown that black stains tend to calcify. Black stain consists of insoluble iron salts that contain calcium and inorganic phosphorus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Frisken and other authors, colonization by anaerobic bacteria in children can occur even before the teeth erupt. According to these studies, bacterial colonization starts quite early and persists from childhood into adulthood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The number of bacteria may increase during puberty, as sex hormone activity increases. Saliva has a protective function: it neutralizes the acids that cause tooth demineralization, which are released by the bacteria in plaque on the teeth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A diet rich in calcium, inorganic phosphorus and protein enhances the protective function of saliva.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 1989, the chemical composition of saliva was assessed in children aged 4-16 in two groups: some had black stain on their teeth and some did not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the saliva of children with black stains on their teeth, calcium, inorganic phosphorus and protein were significantly higher, and glucose was lower.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Epidemiology<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Black<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Epidemiological data vary by author, study and country. According to one source from the 1960s-1970s, the prevalence of black stain in the 11-13 age group was 20%; in Italy – 19.9% in the 7-15 age group; in Germany – 4.6% at ages 6 to 10; in Brazil – 9.3% at ages 3 to 5.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The stain tends to build up and deposit tartar; it adheres firmly to tooth enamel and cannot be removed with usual oral hygiene measures and products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The enamel underneath is usually healthy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The stain mainly causes aesthetic discomfort; the teeth are cleaned at the clinic with special equipment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What causes black deposits on teeth, also known as Black Stain? Learn more about the causes of Priestley’s stain, its etiology and how common it is in children.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":6386,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[30,28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7949","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hygiene","category-tips"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nbdental.ge\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7949","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nbdental.ge\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nbdental.ge\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nbdental.ge\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nbdental.ge\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7949"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nbdental.ge\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7949\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7958,"href":"https:\/\/nbdental.ge\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7949\/revisions\/7958"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nbdental.ge\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6386"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nbdental.ge\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7949"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nbdental.ge\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7949"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nbdental.ge\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7949"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}