The relationship between cemental caries, oral hygiene status and fermentable carbohydrate intake.

Two groups of patients were evaluated for the presence of active, restored, and recurrent root surface caries. One group of 120 subjects had received treatment for moderate to severe periodontitis. The second group consisted of 124 subjects who were affected by moderate to severe periodontitis but had received no treatment. The two groups were also evaluated for amounts of recession, pocket depth, and the presence of bacterial plaque. In addition, each subject was asked to compile a record of his/her dietary intake for a seven-day period. The treated group was found to brush and floss more frequently than the untreated group and had a lower mean plaque score (45.8), than the untreated group (61.4). There was no difference in the mean plaque scores for the subgroups with and without root surface caries within either the treated groups. The prevalence of root surface caries increased through age 59 in the treated group, then diminished after age 60. In the untreated group the prevalence increased steadily with age. Analysis of the data from the dietary hisories revealed that the subjects in both the treated and the untreated groups who were affected with root surface caries had a significantly higher (P less than 0.01) number of fermentable carbohydrate exposures per week.