This study used the Demirjian method to assess dental maturation to compare development rates in children of three ethnic populations living in New Zealand (Mäori, Pacific Island, and European). Examinations of orthopantomographs of 1,343 children (623 females and 660 males) between the ages of 2.5 and 14 years indicated a dental age consistently lower than the children’s chronological age. According to regression analyses, the difference between dental and chronological age was significantly greater in Mäori than in European children (regression coefficient 0.414) and also significantly greater in Pacific Island children than in European children (regression coefficient 0.574). Further regression analyses revealed a significant difference between boys and girls for the 50th quantile maturity score (by 1.49) and a significant difference for the interaction of sex and age. Similarly, the maturity score was significantly higher for Mäori girls (1.28), although the age/interaction slopes were not significantly different between Mäori boys and girls.
