Assessment of decayed, missing, and filled teeth and the influencing factors in ۷-۱۰-year-old students in Quchan, Iran, ۲۰۲۰-۲۰۲۱

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Dental caries is considered the most common chronic disease in childhood and decayed, missing, and filled teeth (DMFT) index is regarded as a valuable prognostic factor for oral and dental health in adulthood. Thus, the aim of this study was to describe the prevalence of DMFT and self-care behavior among ۷-۱۰-year-old students in Quchan, a city in northeast Iran.METHODS: A total of ۵۲۸ students aged ۷-۱۰ years old, selected through cluster random sampling, participated in this descriptive cross-sectional study. Demographic information including age, gender, parental educational level, and frequency of tooth brushing was obtained from the participants; DMFT index was recorded after careful oral examination. Data were analyzed using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), independent samples t-test, and chi-square test.RESULTS: In this study, the ratio of girls to boys was ۱:۱. The overall mean of DMFT was ۴.۷۰ ± ۳.۱۶, with no significant difference regarding the gender. However, different age ranges presented significant fluctuation in the mean of DMFT value with the significantly highest value observed in ۹-year-old and the lowest in ۱۰-year-old students. Moreover, ۸.۹۲% of the participants were caries-free (CF), with a significant dominance of girls. The significantly higher CF index was observed in ۷-year-old students as compared to the other ages. However, daily tooth brushing or parental educational level showed no significant correlation with DMFT or CF indices.CONCLUSION: Due to the high prevalence of DMFT reported in this study, a comprehensive plan should be developed to promote children’s oral health. This issue reinforces the need for preventive programs in general policies of the county.

Keywords:

Oral Health , Dental Hygiene , Tooth , Students