Pattern of Dental Caries Experience in  A Turkish Young Adults

Method: Study was carried out on 398 young adults (18-26 years old) of both genders. Examinations were performed with dental mirrors and blunt,sickle-shaped explorers under a dental chair light according to WHO recommendations.The caries pattern of each tooth was also detected via bitewing radiographs.Caries experience was assessed at patient, tooth and surface levels.The subjects were categorized into three groups:low caries experience(LC), moderate caries experience(MC) and high caries experience(HC) according to DMFT index of persons.The range of DMFT scores 0–2,3-5 and ≥ 6 for the LC,MC and HC groups respectively.Caries experience is reported as decayed and filled surfaces (DF) at surface level. Chi-square test was used for statistical analyze.

Result: Caries prevalence was 85.4% in subjects,15.9% in teeth and 4.3% in all surfaces.The mean DMFT was 4.6 in this young adult population.The number of subjects was 124, 117 and 157 for LC, MC and HC groups respectively.Females showed a higher incidence of caries than males (p<0,05).Caries distribution was higher in the maxilla (54%) than in the mandible (46%).The highest caries rate was found in posterior teeth (94%) in both jaws.Caries lesions were not evenly distributed among different tooth types.The most commonly affected teeth were first molars,(45.7% of the overall sample), especially in the mandible.The most affected surfaces were occlusal, distal and mesial for molars, premolars and anterior teeth respectively.

Conclusion: Occlusal surfaces of molar teeth are highly suspected for dental caries in this young adult population.The preventive strategies should be focused on prevent the plaque accumulation due to anatomic liability.The caries distribution at tooth and surface levels can be characterized using different quantitative or qualitative index other than DMFT.