Abstract

MULLER, Ida Beatriz; CASTILHOS, Eduardo Dickie de; CAMARGO, Maria Beatriz Junqueira  and  GONCALVES, Helen. Dental caries experience and use of public dental services by school children: a descriptive study in Arroio do Padre, Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil, 2013. Epidemiol. Serv. Saúde [online]. 2015, vol.24, n.4, pp.759-770. ISSN 1679-4974.

OBJECTIVE: to describe the use of public dental services and to assess deft/DMFT indexes in the city of Arroio do Padre, state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. METHODS: this was a cross-sectional study of all children aged5 and 12 living in the city in 2013 (N=50); the children underwent oral health exams and the adults responsible for them answered questionnaires. RESULTS: mean deft and DMFT were 39 and 1.3. In deciduous teeth (deft) there was predominance of the decay component (82%) while in the permanent dentition (DMFT) the filled component was predominant (65%); 19 children students had decayed teeth at the time of the examination and 13 of these had had a dental visit at the Basic Health Unit. CONCLUSION: most children presented caries history, which may be attributed in part to low exposure to fluoride, low parental education and little appreciation of deciduous teeth.

Keywords : Dental Caries; DMF index; Oral Health; Dental Health Surveys; Epidemiology, Descriptive.

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