Year : 2020

Volume : Volume 11

Issue : Issue 3

Address for correspondence :
Dr. Novika Sahni.
fabdentist02@gmail.com

Abstract

Background:  To determine dental caries prevalence among 5- and 12-year-old children in relation to brushing frequency, oral hygiene aids and dental visits. Materials and Methods: A cross sectional survey was conducted to determine dental caries prevalence among 5 and 12 year old children in relation to brushing frequency, oral hyiene aids and dental visits. A total of 502 children participated in the study out of which 219 belonged to 5 year age group and 283 belonged to 12 year old children. Results: Dental caries prevalence was found to be higher in children of 5 years of age (63.6%) than that of 12 years (53.6%) (p = 0.001). The mean DMFT was 2.47 ± 2.75 for 5-year-old children and 1.18 ± 1.33 for 12-yearold children. The prevalence of decayed teeth was significantly more among children with no brushing (92.9%) and 2-3 times a month (100%) as compared to those who brush daily (57.9%) or twice a day (55.2%) (p=0.039). The prevalence of decayed teeth was significantly more among children with no aid in comparison to using any aid for cleaning teeth (p=0.048). A non-significant difference was found in the prevalence of decayed teeth among children who had never been to a dentist, who visited within last 12 months and who visited > 12 months ago. The obtained data were analyzed using the chi-square test and one-way ANOVA test. Conclusion: This study thus gives a brief insight into the dental caries in relation to various factors among 5 and 12 year old children. Besides, this is an important period for instituting preventing programmes because as the teeth erupt, bacteria colonize tooth surfaces and dental behaviour starts to develop during this time. It is however important to carry out an in-depth screening survey on a larger population to draw definite conclusions about dental caries.

Keywords: Brushing, Children, Dental Caries, Frequency, Prevalence.