Dental caries prevalence in 12-year-old schoolchildren in the city of Campina Grande, Paraíba, Brazil: a socioeconomic approach

Authors

  • Cristiano Moura Universidade Estadual da Paraíba
  • Alessandro Leite Cavalcanti Universidade Estadual da Paraíba
  • Priscilla Kelly Medeiros Bezerra Universidade Estadual da Paraíba

Keywords:

Dental caries, socioeconomic factors, prevalence,

Abstract

Purpose: To assess dental caries prevalence in male and female 12-year-old schoolchildren in the city of Campina Grande, Paraiba, Brazil, and investigate its association with gender and socioeconomic and preventive variables. Methods: The study population consisted of 553 children regularly attending the municipal educational system and spatially distributed among the six sanitary health districts of the town, urban area. Dental caries prevalence was assessed by the DMFT index as recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO). A questionnaire was used to gather information on educational level of the child and mother, family income, and oral health preventive measures. Chi-square test and Fisher’s exact test were used to analyze the association of the variables as well as odds ratio (OR). Results: Caries prevalence was 70.5%, and mean DMFT was 2.09. Maternal educational level and time of the last visit to the dentist were positively associated with DMFT index. Conclusion: The results suggest a high prevalence of dental caries in this sample of schoolchildren, and DMF-T below the WHO recommendations. Key words: Dental caries; socioeconomic factors; prevalence; epidemiology

Author Biographies

Cristiano Moura, Universidade Estadual da Paraíba

Cirurgião-Dentista, Mestre em Saúde Coletiva.

Alessandro Leite Cavalcanti, Universidade Estadual da Paraíba

Professor Titular Doutor, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Saúde Coletiva, Universidade Estadual da Paraíba (UEPB).

Priscilla Kelly Medeiros Bezerra, Universidade Estadual da Paraíba

Cirurgiã-Dentista

Downloads

Published

2008-06-22

Issue

Vol. 23 No. 3 (2008)

Section

Original Article

License

COPYRIGHT
The submission of originals to Odonto Ciência implies the transfer by the authors of the right for publication. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication. If the authors wish to include the same data into another publication, they must cite Odonto Ciência as the site of original publication.

CREATIVE COMMONS LICENSE
As this journal is open access, the articles are allowed free use in scientific and educational applications, with citation of the source.
According to the type of Creative Commons License (CC-BY 4.0) adopted by Odonto Ciência, the user must respect the requirements below.

You are free to:
Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format.
Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.

However, only under the following terms:
Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests Odonto Ciência endorses you or your use.
No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.

Notices:
You do not have to comply with the license for elements of the material in the public domain or where your use is permitted by an applicable exception or limitation.
No warranties are given. The license may not give you all of the permissions necessary for your intended use. For example, other rights such as publicity, privacy, or moral rights may limit how you use the material.

For more details on the Creative Commons license, please follow the link in the footer of this website.