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Mutans Streptococci and dental caries prevalence in a group of Latvian preschool children
Author(s) -
Köhler Birgitta,
Bjarnason Sibilla,
Care Ruta,
Mackevica Inese,
Pence Inguna
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
european journal of oral sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.802
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1600-0722
pISSN - 0909-8836
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0722.1995.tb00171.x
Subject(s) - saliva , streptococcus mutans , medicine , dentistry , biology , bacteria , genetics
Paraffin‐stimulated saliva samples were collected from 140 children 3‐ and 4‐yr old attending nine nursery schools in Latvia. The salivary levels of mutans streptococci were rated from zero to 3 after being cultured on a commercially available strip selective for these microorganisms. Of the children, 29.3% were rated at zero (∼10 4 cfu per ml saliva). This group of children demonstrated the lowest mean caries prevalence dmfs tot = 1.5 (SD 1.9). The highest dmfs tot was found among children in class 2 (38.6%; %10 5 ‐10 6 cfu/ml) and class 3 (12.1% >10 6 cfu/ml) with a mean caries prevalence of 6.5 (SD 5.8) and 6.4 (SD 6.0), respectively. The study demonstrates the association between high caries prevalence and high salivary levels of mutans streptococci in the young child. It is suggested that early identification of mutans streptococcicolonized children might be of value in selecting at caries risk children for preventive measures.