Caries prevalence, salivary Streptococcus mutans and dietary scores in 13-year-old Swedish schoolchildren

388 13-yr-old schoolchildren from Karlstad, Sweden, participated. Dental caries experience was expressed as number of decayed (D) and filled (F) tooth surfaces (S), and registered on bite-wing radiographs and obtained from records. Salivary Streptococcus mutans counts were determined by a spatula method. A dietary score was calculated for each individual based on an interview concerning the intake frequency of 23 sugar-containing products. Significantly lower DFS values were found in the group with no detectable S. mutans compared to three of the four groups with salivary S. mutans (P less than 0.01). No differences were found between the DFS values of individuals with high, moderate or low dietary scores. There was no statistically significant association between dietary scores and levels of S. mutans. Among the children with no detectable S. mutans, there were higher DFS-values with increasing intake frequency. No relationship between initial caries lesions, S. mutans and diet was found.