Factors affecting caries levels amongst 5-year-old children in County Kerry, Ireland.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the factors associated with high caries levels in 5-year-old children in the Kerry Community Care Area of the Southern Health Board in Ireland. DESIGN Cross-sectional study. SETTING County Kerry, Ireland in 1997. SUBJECTS A random sample of 5-year-old children. METHOD Six hundred and thirty-six 5-year-old children were examined for caries following WHO diagnostic criteria. Information on possible caries risk factors was collected by means of a parental questionnaire. RESULTS Using multivariate logistic regression analysis the variables most significantly associated with the presence of caries were water fluoridation status, whether or not the child took the baby feeding bottle to bed, the age at which tooth brushing started and the number of sweet snacks and drinks taken in a day. While there was a wide variation in caries levels between nine geographic areas in Co. Kerry the only significant geographic variation found was between fluoridated and non-fluoridated areas. CONCLUSION The prevalence of dental caries amongst 5-year-old children in Co. Kerry was highest in those residing in non-fluoridated communities, in those who took a baby feeding bottle to bed, in those who did not commence tooth brushing until after two years of age and in those who had sweet snacks or sweet drinks between meals three or more times per day.