Caries levels and patterns in head start children in fluoridated and non‐fluoridated, urban and non‐urban sites in Ohio, USA

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to determine caries levels and prevalences of previously identified caries patterns in low income children in the primary dentition in Ohio, USA. Children were examined from urban fluoridated (n = 505), urban non-fluoridated (n = 395), non-urban optimal fluoride (n = 183), and non-urban suboptimal fluoride (n = 227) sites. Caries scores were similar for the two sites having optimal fluoride; scores from fluoridated sites were lower than scores from the two suboptimal fluoride sites. Children from all four sites were caries-free ranging from 36% in the urban non-fluoridated site to 50% in the non-urban optimally fluoride site. More children in the suboptimal fluoridated sites had smooth surface lesions than in the optimally fluoridated sites. More children with defect associated lesions had fewer than six (chi 2 = 222; P less than 0.01) carious surfaces than did children with smooth surface lesions.

Pattern and severity of early childhood caries

“…In our study, 34% of preschool children had ECC with a mean dmft of 1.4 (39). These data were comparable with epidemiological findings from similar cross‐sectional surveys of preschool children living in England (56) and Ireland (57) but lower than those from Ohio, USA (58), Seoul, Korea (43) and Taiwan (59). In addition, within the group of children with ECC, 9.4% had the rampant or severe form of ECC, which was less than the prevalence rate reported by other epidemiological surveys using similar diagnostic criteria (9, 43, 56, 57, 59).…”

Risk indicators for early childhood caries in Taiwan

“…The level of dental decay found in this study are similar to those found in the 1971 survey (4). We continue to see a high caries rate among young children in Taiwan, and such a rate is significantly higher than the reported caries level in the underserved preschoolers with fluoridated water in the US (7, 8). One implication of this finding is that intervention should begin much earlier than age 3, which should include the prevention of white spot lesions in order to disrupt the initiation of this significant disease.…”

“…Caries classifications were based on caries site grouping. Five caries patterns were classified based on site of formation as follows (8).…”

“…Each child was placed in only one of the five categories (8). Children were classified by site/pattern‐oriented caries classification.…”

“…Sites of dental caries in the primary dentition seem to be related to varying etiologies. Thus, there is a need for a more descriptive caries index (7–10). Major caries site groupings related to etiology include, for example, pit and fissure caries and caries of the proximal surfaces of molars.…”