Abstract:

OBJECTIVE

To determine prevalence and severity of dental caries using WHO methods by age, gender and educational levels and compare actual DMFT scores to self-reported scores.

METHOD

Cross-sectional study was conducted using face-to-face interviews and oral examinations in La Esquina community, Province Maria Trinidad Sanchez, Dominican Republic (DR) among 104 adult participants. Caries experience was determined using DMFT scores.

RESULTS

Prevalence of caries was high with 94.2% of participants affected by it. Mean DMFT index (11.95±9.67) for participants having ≤ 8 years of school education was significantly higher than the mean score (6.69±4.39) for people with >8 years of education (F=9.3; p<0.01). Likewise, mean DMFT score for age group ≥55 years was significantly higher than for younger age categories (F=5.87; p<0.01). Caries severity was found to be statistically significant by age groups (χ² =17.42, p=.002) with more proportion of participants ≥ 55 years having DMFT score≥14. Actual mean DMFT score was 4.51 higher than mean self-reported score (9.51 versus 5.08) (Spearman r=.27; p= .01).

CONCLUSIONS

This study provides preliminary data on caries prevalence and identifies unmet treatment needs in rural DR. While caries experience among adults increased significantly both by age and educational levels, caries severity increased significantly with age alone.

References:

1.      Astroth, J., Berg, R., Berkey, D., McDowell, J., & Hamman, R. (1998). Dental caries prevalence and treatment need in Chiriqui Province, Panama. International Dental Journal, 48, 203-209.

2.      Becker, T., Levin, L., Shochat, T., & Einy, S. (2007, May). How much does the DMFT index underestimate the need for restorative care? Journal of Dental Education, 71(5).

3.       Dominican Republic Population Mid-2014. (2014). Retrieved from Population Reference Bureau: http://www.prb.org/DataFinder/Geography/Data.aspx?loc=329

4.      Dowsett, S. A., Archila, L., & Kowolik, M. J. (2001). Oral health status of an indigenous adult population of Central America. Community Dental Health, 18, 162-166.

5.      Estupiñán-Day, S. (2005). Promoting oral health: the use of salt fluoridation to prevent dental caries. Washington D C: Pan American Health Organization.

6.      Fadnes, L. T., Taube, A., & Tylleskär, T. (2008). How to identify information bias due to self-reporting in epidemiological research. 7.

7.      Guiglia, R., Musciotto, A., Compilato, D., Procaccini, M., Russo, L. L., Ciavarella, D., … Campisi, G. (2010). Aging and Oral Health: Effects in Hard and Soft tissues. Current Pharmaceutical Design, 16(6), 619-630.

8.      Hobdell, M., Peterson, P. E., Clarkson, J., & Johnson, N. (2003). Global goals for oral health 2020. International Dental Journal, 5, 285-288.

9.      Milner, T. A. (1998). The salt industry of the Dominican Republic- An Assessment. Pan American Health Organization.

10.  (2005). Opportunity and strategy for improving general health in the Americas through Critical advancements in Oral Health, The way forward 2005-2015. Washington DC: Pan American Health Organization. Retrieved from World Health Organization.

11.  Oral Health Surveys. Basic methods (Third ed.). (1987). Geneva: World Health Organization.

12.   PAHO Basic Health Indicator Data Base. (n.d.). Retrieved from World Health Organization: http://www1.paho.org/english/dd/ais/cp_214.htm

13.   Peterson, P. E. (2003). The World Oral Health Report. Retrieved from World Health Organization: http://www.who.int/oral_health/media/en/orh_report03_en.pdf?ua=1

14.  Peterson, P. E., & Baez, R. J. (2013). Oral Health Surveys. Basic Methods (Fifth ed.). France: World Health Organization.

15.  Peterson, P. E., & Yamamoto, T. (2005). Improving the oral health of older people: the approach of the WHO Global Oral Health Programme. Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology, 33, 81-92.

16.  Peterson, P. E., Bourgeois, D., Ogawa, H., Estupinan-Day, S., & Ndiaye, C. (2005). The global burden of oral diseases and risks to oral health. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 83, 661-669.

17.  Smith, A. C., & Lang, W. P. (1993). CPITN, DMFT, and treatment requirements in a Nicaraguan population. Community Dental Oral Epidemiology, 21, 190-193.

18.  Tisone, C. (2004). The relationship between family health care practices and child growth in the Dominican Republic, Thesis. Indiana University, Department of Anthropology.