Non-cavitated and cavitated caries prevalence and associated factors in 13-year-old-children

Information related to oral health status of adolescents, including dental caries is limited. Objectives: 1) to describe the distribution of non-cavitated and cavitated caries status at both the tooth-level and person-level, and 2) to examine the associations between dental caries status and children's characteristics. Methods: This analysis is part of the Iowa Fluoride Study (IFS). Caries examinations for non-cavitated (D1) vs. cavitated (D2+)/filled (F) status were conducted by trained dentists using primary visual criteria, explorer confirmation, and without radiographs, when the children in the cohort were 13 years old. IFS questionnaires assessing fluoride exposures, diet and other factors sent every 6 months from ages 9 to 13 were used in this analysis. Results: Data are available for 351 children with age 13 dental exams. Caries prevalence for each individual tooth was determined. First permanent molars had the highest percentages of non-cavitated (8-11% per tooth), cavitated (1-5% per tooth) and filled caries (9-19% per tooth). For person-level caries status, about 47% of these children were caries free, while 16%, 15% and 22% of children had only D1 caries, only D2+F caries and both D1 and D2+F caries, respectively. Based on chi-square tests, average toothbrushing frequency and composite water fluoride level were significantly associated with person-level caries experience. Based on Wilcoxon tests, children with toothbrushing frequency of ≤ 1 time/day had significantly higher numbers of D2+F and D1D2+F surfaces than those with > 1 times/day, and children with composite water fluoride level < 0.7 ppm had significantly higher D2+F and D1D2+F counts than those with ≥ 0.7 ppm. Conclusion: Children who had frequent toothbrushing and/or greater composite water fluoride level were less likely to have caries and had lower mean numbers of surfaces with cavitated and/or non-cavitated caries experience. Supported by: NIH #M01-RR00059, R01-DE09551 and R01-DE12101.