The clinical manifestation of mild dental fluorosis is mostly characterised a snow flaking appearance that lack a clear border, opaque, white spots, narrow white lines following the perikymata or patches as the opacities may coalesce with an intact, hard and smooth enamel surface on most of the teeth. With increasing severity, the subsurface enamel, all along the tooth becomes more porous. Enamel may appear yellow/ brown discolouration and/ or many and pitted white-brown lesions that look like cavities. They are often described as "mottled teeth". Fluorosis does not cause discolouration to the enamel directly, as upon eruption into the mouth, affected permanent teeth are not discoloured yet. In dental enamel, fluorosis causes subsurface porosity or hypomineralizations, which extend toward the dentinal-enamel junction as the condition progresses and the affected teeth become more susceptible to staining. Due to diffusion of exogenous ions (e.g., iron and copper), stains develop into the increasingly and abnormally porous enamel. The differential diagnosis for this condition includes:

Turners hypoplasia (although this is usually more localized)
Enamel defects caused by an undiagnosed and untreated celiac disease. Some mild forms of amelogenesis imperfecta and enamel hypoplasia
Enamel defects caused by infection of a primary tooth predecessor
Dental caries: Fluorosis-resembling enamel defects are often misdiagnosed as dental caries. Dental trauma: Mechanical trauma to the primary tooth may cause disturbance to the maturation phase of enamel formation, which may result in enamel opacities on the permanent successors. Classification
The two main classification systems are described below. Others include the tooth surface fluorosis index (Horowitz et al.
From roughly 7 years old thereafter, most childrens permanent teeth would have undergone complete development (except their wisdom teeth), and therefore their susceptibility to fluorosis is greatly reduced, or even insignificant, despite the amount of intake of fluoride. The severity of dental fluorosis depends on the amount of fluoride exposure, the age of the child, individual response, weight, degree of physical activity, nutrition, and bone growth. Individual susceptibility to fluorosis is also influenced by genetic factors.Many well-known sources of fluoride may contribute to overexposure including dentifrice/fluoridated mouthrinse (which young children may swallow), excessive ingestion of fluoride toothpaste, bottled waters which are not tested for their fluoride content, inappropriate use of fluoride supplements, ingestion of foods especially imported from other countries, and public water fluoridation. The last of these sources is directly or indirectly responsible for 40% of all fluorosis, but the resulting effect due to water fluoridation is largely and typically aesthetic. Severe cases can be caused by exposure to water that is naturally fluoridated to levels above the recommended levels, or by exposure to other fluoride sources such as brick tea or pollution from high fluoride coal.Dental fluorosis has been growing in the United States concurrent with fluoridation of municipal water supplies, although disproportionately by race. A 2010 CDC report acknowledges an overall incidence of dental fluorosis of 22% from 1986-87 increased to 41% in the early 21st century, with an increase in moderate to severe dental fluorosis from 1% to 4%.