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Dental caries prevalence amongst 12‐year‐old urban children in East Africa
Author(s) -
Frencken Jo,
Manji Firoze,
Mosha Hiasinti
Publication year - 1986
Publication title -
community dentistry and oral epidemiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.061
H-Index - 101
eISSN - 1600-0528
pISSN - 0301-5661
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0528.1986.tb01505.x
Subject(s) - medicine , tanzania , dar es salaam , dentistry , environmental health , demography , socioeconomics , sociology
It is commonly believed that the prevalence of dental caries in developing countries is increasing, though in Kenya and Tanzania there is insufficient information to confirm such trends. In order to test the hypothesis, therefore, 762 children in Dar es Salaam and 802 children in Nairobi aged 12 yr in 1984 were examined for dental caries as part of a baseline study to monitor changes of prevalence with time. Dental caries was recorded by surfaces using the criteria recommended by the WHO and examinations were performed by standardized examiners. The mean DMFT in Dar es Salaam of 0.67 (SD 1.20) was significantly higher than that for Nairobi, 0.51 (SD 1.23). No differences were found in the mean DMFS index. Nairobi children had a greater number of filled teeth and surfaces. Although a greater proportion of children were caries‐free in Nairobi than in Dar es Salaam, amongst those with caries, Nairobi children had significantly higher DMFS scores, and a greater proportion with DMFS> 4. The possible reasons for such findings are discussed. The mean DMFT and DMFS reported here are amongst the lowest reported in the recent literature from both countries.