Abstract
Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate the difference in caries prevalence based on quadrant dmfs data between first and second primary molars in 5-year-old Dutch children. Study design: Cross-sectional observational study. Methods and statistics: For this study 692 children, all insured by a “Health Insurance Fund”, living in one of four selected cities in The Netherlands were asked to participate in the study. From the original cohort 435 children (49% girls) participated. Clinical examinations were performed and only carious lesions with involvement of the dentine were reported. Lesions on the occlusal, buccal, palatal/lingual, mesial and distal surfaces as well as lesions in buccal and palatal pits and fissures were reported separately. No radiographs were taken. Systematic differences in dmfs between first and second molars in the same quadrant of each primary dentition were tested with the Wilcoxon signed rank test. Results: Second primary molars, even after correction for caries in pits and buccal/palatal fissures, had a statistically significant higher total dmfs than the first primary molars. The differences were mainly found on the occlusal surfaces. On proximal surfaces, the first primary molars had significant more caries than the second primary molars. The d-component constituted the major part of the caries index. Conclusions: Second primary molars, corrected for decay in the pits and buccal/palatal fissures of this molar, are more affected by caries than first primary molars and that the differences in caries prevalence are the largest on the occlusal surface. The specific site of the caries found suggests that developmental disturbances in second primary molars may attribute to their prevalence.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Al-Malik Ml, Holt RD, Bedi R. Prevalence and patterns of caries, rampant caries, and oral health in two- to five-year-old children in Saudi Arabia. J Dent Child 2003;70(3):235–242
Amerongen WE van, Kreulen CM, Cheese molars: a pilot study on the etiology of hypocalcifications in first permanent molars, ASDC J Dent Child 1995;62(4):266–9
Autio-Gold JT, Tomar SL. Prevalence of noncavitated and cavitated carious lesions in 5-year-old Head start Schoolchildren in Alachua County, Florida. Pediatr Dent 2005;27(1):54–60
Bimstein E, Eidelman E, Klein H, Chosack A. Distribution of caries in different tooth surfaces in 7-year-old children. Caries Res 1981; 15:324–330
Douglass JM, Tinanoff N, Tang JMW, Altman DS. Dental caries patterns and oral health behaviors in Arizona infants and toddlers. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol 2001;29:14–22
Douglass JM, Wei Y, Zhang BX, Tinanoff N. Caries prevalence and patterns in 3–6 year old Beijing children. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol 1995;23:340–343
Fearne J, Anderson P, Davis R. 3D X-ray microscopic study of the extent of variations in enamel density in first permanent molars with idiopathic enamel hypomineralisation, Br Dent J 2004;196(10):634–8
Gizani S, Vinckier F, Declerck D. Caries pattern and oral health habits in 2- to 6-year-old children exhibiting differing levels of caries. Clin Oral Invest 1999;3:35–40
Holland, TJ, Crowley MJ. Detailed examination of caries progression in 4-year-old children in a non-fluoridates area in Ireland. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol 1982;10:144–147
Holt RD. The pattern of caries in a group of 5-year-old children and in the same cohort at 9 years of age. Community Dent Health 1995;12:93–99
Kalsbeek H, Poorterman JHG, Eijkman MAJ, Verrips GH. Dental care for young people insured by health insurance fundi: Prevalence and treatment of dental caries between 1987 and 1999. Ned Tijdschr Tandheelkd 2002;109:250–255
Kalsbeek H, Verrips GH, Eijkman MAJ, Kieft JA. Changes in Caries prevalence in children and young adults of Dutch and Turkish or Moroccan Origin in The Netherlands between 1987 and 1993. Caries Res 1996;30:334–341
Li S-H, Kingman A, Forthofer R, Swango P. Comparison of tooth surface-specific dental caries attack patterns in US schoolchildren from two national surveys. J Dent Res1993;72:1398–1405
Van der Linden FPGM. Numerieke en grafische informatie over de gebitson-twikkeling. In: van der Linden FPGM. Gebitsontwikkeling. Bohn Stafleu Van Loghum, 1994. pp. 163–200
Margolis, MQ, Hunt RJ, Vaan WF, Stewart PW. Distribution of primary tooth caries in first-grade children from two nonfluoridated US communities. Pediatr Dent 1994;16:200–205
Menghini G, Steiner M, Leisebach T, Weber R. Caries prevalence among 5-year-olds in the city of Winterthur in the year 2001. Schweiz Monatsschr Zahnmed 2003;113:519–523
Montero MJ, Douglass JM, Mathieu GM. Prevalence of dental caries and enamel defects in Connecticut head start children. Pediatr Dent 2003;25:235–239
Pascoe L, Seow WK. Enamel hypoplasia and dental caries in Australian Aboriginal children: prevalence and correlation between the two diseases. Pediatr Dent 1994;16:193–199
Roeters FJM. Prediction of future caries prevalence in preschool children. Thesis. Nijmegen,1992:71–97
Veerkamp JSJ, Weerheijm KL. Nursing-bottle caries: the importance of a development perspective. J Dent Child 1995;62:381–386
Watt ME, Lunt DA, Gilmour WH. Caries prevalence in the deciduous dentition of a mediaeval population from the South-West of Scotland. Archs Oral Biol 1997;42:811–820
Weerheijm KL. Molar Incisor Hypomineralisation (MIH). Pediatr Dent 2003;3:115–120
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Elfrink, M.E.C., Veerkamp, J.S.J. & Kalsbeek, H. Caries pattern in primary molars in Dutch 5-year-old children. Eur Arch Paediatr Dent 7, 236–240 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03262558
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03262558