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. 2020 Sep 9;17(18):6561.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph17186561.

Caries Prevalence Evolution and Risk Factors among Schoolchildren and Adolescents from Valencia (Spain): Trends 1998-2018

Teresa Almerich-Torres  1 , José María Montiel-Company  1 , Carlos Bellot-Arcís  1 , José Enrique Iranzo-Cortés  1 , José Carmelo Ortolá-Siscar  1 , José Manuel Almerich-Silla  1
Affiliations

Caries Prevalence Evolution and Risk Factors among Schoolchildren and Adolescents from Valencia (Spain): Trends 1998-2018

Teresa Almerich-Torres et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the caries status and risk factors in the schoolchildren of Spain's Valencia region in 2018 and to compare them to the 20-year evolution of caries indicators in the region. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 1722 children and adolescents aged between 6 and 15 using cluster sampling. Caries status, using International Caries Detection and Assessment System II (ICDAS II) criteria, and sociodemographic variables were recorded. To ensure the comparison with previous studies using WHO caries criteria, the cut-off point was established at ICDAS II code 4. Caries prevalence was found to be 37.4% and the decayed and filled teeth index (dft) was 1.23 at 6 years for deciduous dentition (DD). In permanent dentition (PD) at 12 years, caries prevalence was 30.1% with a 0.66 decayed, missing and filled teeth index (DMFT), and at 15 years, prevalence was 44.6% and DMFT was 1.21. Socioeconomic status poses a major risk factor for caries prevalence in deciduous dentition; it is 1.8 times higher in the lowest socioeconomic group. Deciduous dentition status has worsened in the most recent eight-year period, whereas in permanent dentition the 12- and 15-year values are similar to those of the 2010 survey. Evolution analysis suggests that community dental care programs be enhanced, involving preventive activities staring at the first year and targeting disadvantaged groups.

Keywords: ICDAS II; caries epidemiology; caries prevalence; cross-sectional survey; risk factors; schoolchildren; socioeconomic status; surveillance.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Evolution of caries indices between 1998 and 2018.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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