BackgroundThis position paper was commissioned by the European Association of Dental Public Health, which has established six working groups to investigate the current status of six topics related to oral public health. One of these areas is epidemiology of periodontal diseases.MethodsTwo theses "A systematic review of definitions of periodontitis and the methods that have been used to identify periodontitis" [1] and "Factors affecting community oral health care needs and provision" [2] formed the starting point for this position paper. Additional relevant and more recent publications were retrieved through a MEDLINE search.ResultsThe literature reveals a distinct lack of consensus and uniformity in the definition of periodontitis within epidemiological studies. There are also numerous differences in the methods used. The consequence is that data from studies using differing case definitions and differing survey methods are not easily interpretable or comparable. The limitations of the widely used Community Periodontal Index of Treatment Need (CPITN) and its more recent derivatives are widely recognized. Against this background, this position paper reviews the current evidence base, outlines existing problems and suggests how epidemiology of periodontal diseases may be improved.ConclusionsThe remit of this working group was to review and discuss the existing evidence base of epidemiology of periodontal diseases and to identify future areas of work to further enhance it.

Presence of visible plaque accumulation and reported consumption of sugared drinks were associated with prevalence of caries experience in Flemish preschool children. Severity of disease was associated with gender and with presence of plaque. Results underline the importance of plaque control and diet management from very young age on.

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The results of this study illustrate the existence of a significant association between parental smoking behavior and caries experience in 5-year-old children.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the timing of emergence of permanent teeth in Flanders (Belgium). Data were obtained in the Signal-Tandmobiel projecta, a longitudinal study in a sample of 4468 Flemish children. Survival analysis with a log-logistic distribution was performed to calculate median (and mean) values and 95% CI's for all permanent teeth. The analysis indicated significantly earlier emergence ages in girls than in boys. The emergence pattern turned out to be symmetric in both sexes. Most mandibular teeth emerged significantly before their antagonists, in boys as well as in girls. These findings are in agreement with other studies on the emergence of permanent teeth.