Dental Caries Status and Caries Risk Factors in Students Ages 12–14 Years in Zhejiang, China

Background An accurate and valid caries prevention policy is absent in Zhejiang because of insufficient data. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate oral health status and related risk factors in 12- to 14-year-old students in Zhejiang, China. Material/Methods Using multi-stage, stratified, random sampling, we recruited a total of 4860 students aged 12 to 14 years old from 6 regions in Zhejiang in this cross-sectional study. Dental caries was measured using the Decayed, Missing and Filled Teeth (DMFT) index and the Significant Caries Index (SiC). Information concerning family background and relevant behaviors was collected in a structured questionnaire. Logistic regression analysis was used to study risk factors related to dental caries. Results The overall prevalence of dental caries was 44% and the mean DMFT and SiC scores were 1.14 and 3.11, respectively. Female students had a higher level of dental caries than male students (P<0.01). The annual increase in caries prevalence was 3% with increasing age, and the DMFT score was 0.15. The results of logistic regression analysis showed that female sex, older age, snacks consumption once or more per day, fair or poor self-assessment of dental health, toothache experience, and dental visits were the most significant risk factors for dental caries, with odds ratios ranging from 1.24 to 2.25 (P<0.01). Conclusions The prevalence of dental caries in 12- to 14-year-old students in Zhejiang was low, with a tendency to increase compared with previous oral surveys. Female sex, older age, increased sugar intake, poor oral health self-assessment, and bad dental experience were the most important factors increasing dental caries risks.

[1]  Hong Chen,et al.  Oral health status in Sichuan Province: findings from the oral health survey of Sichuan, 2015–2016 , 2017, International Journal of Oral Science.

[2]  Poul Erik Petersen,et al.  Prevention of dental caries through the use of fluoride--the WHO approach. , 2016, Community dental health.

[3]  M. Bravo,et al.  Oral health-related quality of life in 6- to 12-year-old schoolchildren in Spain. , 2016, International journal of paediatric dentistry.

[4]  M. Mäkelä,et al.  Pit and fissure sealants versus fluoride varnishes for preventing dental decay in the permanent teeth of children and adolescents. , 2016, The Cochrane database of systematic reviews.

[5]  Tao Xu,et al.  Oral Health Status and Oral Health Care Model in China. , 2016, The Chinese journal of dental research : the official journal of the Scientific Section of the Chinese Stomatological Association.

[6]  M. I. Côrtes,et al.  Prevalence and risk factors associated with traumatic dental injury among 12-year-old schoolchildren in Montes Claros, MG, Brazil. , 2015, Ciencia & saude coletiva.

[7]  Yan Zhang,et al.  Oral health survey and oral health questionnaire for high school students in Tibet, China , 2014, Head & Face Medicine.

[8]  P. Moynihan,et al.  Response to Letter to the Editor, “Effect on Caries of Restricting Sugars Intake: Systematic Review to Inform WHO Guidelines” , 2014, Journal of dental research.

[9]  R. Lynch.  The primary and mixed dentition, post-eruptive enamel maturation and dental caries: a review. , 2013, International dental journal.

[10]  Alan D. Lopez,et al.  Global Burden of Oral Conditions in 1990-2010 , 2013, Journal of dental research.

[11]  A. Sheiham,et al.  Relationships between oral diseases and impacts on Thai schoolchildren's quality of life: evidence from a Thai national oral health survey of 12- and 15-year-olds. , 2012, Community dentistry and oral epidemiology.

[12]  L. Do.  Response to the Letter to the Editor, “Distribution of Caries in Children: Variations between and within Populations” , 2012 .

[13]  J. Kotch,et al.  Impact of poor oral health on children's school attendance and performance. , 2011, American journal of public health.

[14]  H. Worthington,et al.  Fluoride toothpastes of different concentrations for preventing dental caries in children and adolescents. , 2010, The Cochrane database of systematic reviews.

[15]  P. Petersen,et al.  Oral health and the impact of socio-behavioural factors in a cross sectional survey of 12-year old school children in Laos , 2009 .

[16]  W. Marcenes,et al.  Activities related to the occurrence of traumatic dental injuries in 15- to 18-year-olds. , 2009, Dental traumatology : official publication of International Association for Dental Traumatology.

[17]  P. Petersen.  Global policy for improvement of oral health in the 21st century--implications to oral health research of World Health Assembly 2007, World Health Organization. , 2009, Community dentistry and oral epidemiology.

[18]  P. Petersen.  World Health Organization global policy for improvement of oral health--World Health Assembly 2007. , 2008, International dental journal.

[19]  Gina Thornton-Evans,et al.  Trends in oral health status: United States, 1988-1994 and 1999-2004. , 2007, Vital and health statistics. Series 11, Data from the National Health Survey.

[20]  J. Lukacs,et al.  Explaining sex differences in dental caries prevalence: Saliva, hormones, and “life‐history” etiologies , 2006, American journal of human biology : the official journal of the Human Biology Council.

[21]  Denis Bourgeois,et al.  The global burden of oral diseases and risks to oral health. , 2005, Bulletin of the World Health Organization.

[22]  J. Featherstone,et al.  The Continuum of Dental Caries—Evidence for a Dynamic Disease Process , 2004, Journal of dental research.

[23]  M. Peres,et al.  Dental pain prevalence and association with dental caries and socioeconomic status in schoolchildren, Southern Brazil, 2002. , 2004, Brazilian oral research.

[24]  H. Stenlund,et al.  Caries incidence and lesion progression from adolescence to young adulthood: a prospective 15-year cohort study in Sweden , 2004, Caries Research.

[25]  P. Petersen,et al.  The second national survey of oral health status of children and adults in China. , 2002, International dental journal.

[26]  W. Marcenes,et al.  Impact of traumatic injuries to the permanent teeth on the oral health-related quality of life in 12-14-year-old children. , 2002, Community dentistry and oral epidemiology.

[27]  H. Kiyak,et al.  Socioeconomic factors that affect international caries levels. , 2001, Community dentistry and oral epidemiology.

[28]  A. Sheiham.  Dietary effects on dental diseases , 2001, Public Health Nutrition.

[29]  D. Bratthall.  Introducing the Significant Caries Index together with a proposal for a new global oral health goal for 12-year-olds. , 2000, International dental journal.

[30]  J. Featherstone.  The science and practice of caries prevention. , 2000, Journal of the American Dental Association.

[31]  U. Lindblad,et al.  Gender differences in knowledge, attitude, behavior and perceived oral health among adolescents. , 1999, Acta odontologica Scandinavica.

[32]  W H Bowen,et al.  Dental caries. , 1972, Archives of disease in childhood.