Dental health in 16–year‐old Swedish high school students in 1979 and 1984

The aim of this investigation was to compare dietary habits, plaque and gingival scores, and the dental caries prevalence of 16–yr‐olds in 1979 with those of individuals of the same age 5 yr later, i.e. in 1984. Students from two high schools in Kristianstad, Sweden, participated, 273 in 1979 and 228 in 1984. The same two dentists treated the children in 1979 and 1984. The students were asked to fill in a questionnaire concerning breakfast, school‐lunch and between‐meal habits. Information about the number of decayed (D) and filled (F) approximal tooth surfaces (S a ), DFS a , dental plaque and gingival bleeding scores was obtained from records at the Public Dental Clinics. The prevalence of caries lesions was also determined on 116 and 110 randomly selected pairs of bitewing radiographs from the participants in 1979 and 1984. respectively. The mean DS a was 0.9 in 1979 and 0.3 in 1984. The corresponding values for FS a were 3.6 and 1.5, respectively. In 1979, the DFS a was zero in 28% of the children, compared to 54% in 1984. All these differences were statistically significant ( P <0.05). When analyzing the distribution of enamel and dentin caries lesions diagnosed on radiographs, the same tendency was found, i.e. that dental health had improved from 1979 to 1984. The dietary habits, however, were on the whole the same on both occasions, as judged from the answers given in the questionnaire. The distribution of plaque and gingival scores did not change during the 5‐yr period. The main conclusion from this study is therefore that other factors than improved dietary habits and oral hygiene must have contributed to the obvious reduction of caries prevalence in these groups of high school students.