Determinants of dental status and caries among adults in southern Thailand.

This study describes the tooth mortality and the prevalence and severity of dental caries among 30- to 39- and 50- to 59-year-old rural Thais from the Province of Songhkla, Thailand. Three hundred and sixty-three persons were given a clinical examination, including assessment of dental status, dental caries, and periodontal recordings. Information on religious faith, smoking, and betel use was obtained by means of an interview. The prevalence of edentulism was low (<2% among 50- to 59-year-olds). The mean number of teeth present was high, 29.4 among the 30- to 39-year-olds and 24.3 among the 50- to 59-year-olds. The prevalence of caries was high (91% among 30- to 39-year-olds and 84% among 50- to 59-year-olds). The mean DFT values were 5.7 and 5.8, respectively, and a substantial part of the DFT consisted of deep dentin lesions. The results did not corroborate the hypothesis that persons of Muslim faith have worse dental conditions than do Thai Buddhist or that dental disease levels are higher among the Thai population than among other Southeast Asian populations.