Atraumatic restorative treatment for prevention and treatment of caries in an underserved community

We evaluated the acceptability and effectiveness of atraumatic restorative treatment to prevent and treat caries in an underserved community in Mexico. We placed 370 restorations and 193 sealants in 118 children aged 5 to 18; 85% reported no pain, and 93% were comfortable with their restorations. We then evaluated the children 1 and 2 years later. At 2-year evaluation, 66% of restorations and 35% of sealants were retained. Atraumatic restorative treatment is acceptable and effective to control and prevent decay in a socioeconomically deprived community.     

基层社区非创伤性修复治疗防龋的效果分析

非创伤性修复治疗 ( atraumatic restorativetreatment,ART)是一种只用手动器械去除龋坏组织 ,无需备洞 ,不损伤正常牙体组织 ,然后用粘性修复材料修复龋洞的操作技术。修复治疗价格低廉 ,不需要电力 ,不需要昂贵的口腔设备。操作简单易学 ,易于普及。使龋病得以早期发现和及时治疗 ,提高龋病的充填率 ,使更多的人终生保持口腔健康。1　材料和方法1 .1　实验对象　首先由课题组与经过培训的社区医疗小组联合进行桐城市 5 a、1 2 a年龄组龋病的流行病学抽样调查 ,取得龋病的患病率、充填率的本底资料。 5 a组定点在桐城市实验小学幼儿园 ,1…     

City-level gender differentials in the prevalence of dental caries and restorative dental treatment

This study assesses gender differentials in the distribution of dental caries and restorative treatment at the city level in order to discuss gender inequities in health. We retrieved data for caries prevalence and dental service utilisation by 11- and 12-year-old girls and boys in 131 towns in the state of S?o Paulo, Brazil, 1998. We also gathered aggregate population data for these towns, and information already held by the health authority regarding the provision of dental services. Results of data analysis indicated that girls presented higher caries indices in permanent teeth than boys of the same age, concurrent with a higher utilisation of dental care. When studying aggregate data at the city level, we gathered evidence reinforcing the hypothesis that the higher prevalence of caries in girls is attributable to their earlier eruption of permanent teeth, with no significant association between this excess and indices of socio-economic status at the city level. However, indices assessing the discrepant incorporation of dental services between genders were higher in towns with a poorer profile of socio-economic status. We also observed that towns whose public health service was more effective in providing dental care presented a more equitable gender distribution of dental services. Public resources destined to dental assistance contributed to reducing inequities in oral health by allowing an incorporation of restorative dental treatment more equitably distributed between girls and boys.     

Carbohydrates, fluorine and dental caries]

The most children caries morbidity was correlated with the intensity of carbohydrates uptake and was not directly connected with the fluorine content in the water. Author concluded, that the rational nourishment is significant in the caries prophylaxis.     

Prevalence of dental caries and treatment needs in 6 to 12 year-old schoolchildren at public schools]

OBJECTIVE: To assess dental caries prevalence and treatment needs of schoolchildren in the State of Goiás, Brazil. METHODS: The study population consisted of 6-12-yr-old schoolchildren (n=1,419), male and female, attending 25 public schools located in the urban area of 9 provincial cities in the State of Goiás. RESULTS: Percentage of caries-free schoolchildren was very low at all ages (4.4% at age 12). Mean DMF-T ranged from 0.41 at age 6 to 5.19 at age 12. Mean dmf-t in this age group ranged from 4.93 to 0.29. Treatment needs were higher than the proportion of treated teeth in both deciduous and permanent dentition. CONCLUSION: The high prevalence of dental caries found in schoolchildren in the provincial cities of Goiás suggests the need for oral health education and preventive programs targeted at the underlying causes of the disease on a population level.     

Preventive strategies in the control of dental caries: a research synthesis

A literature review was conducted on the effectiveness of measures to prevent dental caries. Articles published in scientific journals from 1980 to 1998 and indexed in MEDLINE were selected. Some 210 articles were found and their abstracts classified according to intervention strategies, type of research design, and observed effects. The most frequent preventive measures were the use of fluoride toothpaste (20.5%), fluoride mouthwash (17.2%), and occlusal sealants (18,1%). The main target population was schoolchildren 6-12 years old (53.8%) and teenagers (15.7%). Western Europe produced 58.7% of the articles on this subject, followed by United States (22.7%), Eastern Europe, Asia, Canada, and Latin America. No relationship was identified between program results (effective as opposed to ineffective studies) and the type of preventive practice and research design, indicating that other issues need to be investigated, such as the context of organizational implementation (where, how, and by whom prevention is implemented). Education in oral hygiene as a basic tool and key component in specific preventive action has received little research attention.     

龋病的影响因素及防治进展

龋病是一种以细菌为主要病原体,多因素作用下的,发生在牙齿硬组织的慢性、进行性、破坏性疾病,被世界卫生组织（WHO）列为继癌症、心血管疾病之后的第三大慢性非传染性疾病,龋病患病率高、危害范围广,     

Effects of air pollution on the etiology of dental caries]

A study has been carried out investigating caries morbidity in children and changes in the macro- and microelement composition of saliva and teeth tissue depending on the degree of ambient air contamination by dust, nitrogen oxides, sulphurous gas, lead and carbon oxide. A positive correlation has been identified between dental caries morbidity and environmental factors (carbon oxide). Magnesium, silicon, iron, aluminum and copper dental content in children living in a relatively clean district was reduced. A conclusion has been made on the necessity to take into account ecological situation in the process of comprehensive prophylaxis of dental caries in children.     

Nutritional status, tooth eruption, and dental caries: a review

Animal studies have shown that early malnutrition affects tooth structure, delays tooth eruption, and results in increased dental caries. However, epidemiologic evidence in support of these findings has been elusive. Cross-sectional surveys show that populations with a higher prevalence of caries in their deciduous teeth also show a lower prevalence of caries in their permanent teeth. However, longitudinal data from individuals show exactly the opposite. Caries development is also delayed as a consequence of a delayed tooth eruption and thus the bell-shaped curve that results from plotting deciduous caries prevalence vs age is shifted to the right in malnourished children. This effect will result in an apparently negative association between caries in deciduous and permanent teeth when cross-sectional surveys are compared. Once the effect on tooth eruption is taken into account, the contribution of malnutrition to increased caries susceptibility may be observed, as demonstrated by a recent cross-sectional study involving Peruvian children.     

Fluoride and dental caries: two different statistical approaches to the same data source

A recent analysis of data from earlier papers on the relationship between dental caries and drinking water fluoride concentration suggested that the commonly accepted inverse relationship did not exist. Our reanalysis of those data, however, confirms the well-known association between fluoride concentration and dental caries. It also shows that the contrary result arose misleadingly from three simultaneous methodological errors: use of a unifactorial instead of a multifactorial model; omission of or over-aggregation of some data, and analysis of homoscedastic probits instead of heteroscedastic counts.     

Prevalence of dental caries among school children: a cross-sectional survey in the city of Barcelona]

The results of a cross-sectional survey performed in the spring of 1990 in a sample of 533 twelve-year old schoolchildren in the city of Barcelona (Spain) are presented. The proportion of children with caries is 49.2%, with a DMFT index of 1.34 (1.09 for boys and 1.50 for girls). 63.4% of permanent decayed teeth were filled, and 2.2% were missing. There is a socioeconomic gradient in dental decay, with more caries among the lower socioeconomic strata, where missing teeth concentrate. The comparison of these results with those of other studies suggests a decline in caries incidence in school age in Spain, and greater use of dental care services.