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The relationships between prevalence of caries, percentage with active caries, and caries severity
Author(s) -
Spencer A. J.,
Lewis J.
Publication year - 1987
Publication title -
australian dental journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.701
H-Index - 71
eISSN - 1834-7819
pISSN - 0045-0421
DOI - 10.1111/j.1834-7819.1987.tb01296.x
Subject(s) - dentistry , medicine
The specification of the relationships between prevalence of caries, percentage of children with active caries, and caries severity improves our understanding of the distribution and extent of caries as well as providing a method of predicting one from another. Using recent Australian data these relationships were investigated and specified. A catalytic equation best fitted the relationship between prevalence of caries and caries severity. A mixed‐multiplicative equation best fitted the relationship between percentage with active caries and caries severity. The specifications of these relationships appeared sensitive to changes in the distribution and extent of caries over time. However, the magnitude of the changes occurring differs between the three measures. This may have contributed to the late recognition of the changing pattern of caries and may have implications for the delivery of dental services.