Caries experience in Latvian nursery school children

Abstract In 1993 the dental health was assessed in 631 Latvian 3–4‐yr‐old nursery school children. Forty‐eight percent of the 3‐yr‐olds and 26% of the 4‐yr‐olds were caries free. The mean dmft for the total sample was 3.2 (2.2 and 3.8 in the 3‐and 4‐yr‐olds, respectively). Molar caries, accounting for 66% of the total dmft score, was dominant in both age groups. Sixteen percent of the children had received restorations, 38% of which manifested recurrent caries. Recurrent caries was relatively more frequent in the younger children. Concomitant with a general increase in caries level, the polarization of the disease was less pronounced in the older children. The upper 25% of the distribution for 3‐ and 4‐yr‐olds contained 74% and 40% of the dmft, respectively. Daily toothbrushing was reported for 60% of the children. Of those, 38% used fluoride‐containing dentifrice. No significant associations were found between caries experience and toothbrushing frequency, use of fluoride dentifrice or parents' education.