Oral health practices and dental caries among Libyan pupils, Benghazi (1993-94).

We investigated the oral health practices and prevalence of dental caries among Libyan pupils (6-12 years), by studying 389 boys and 373 girls selected randomly from 11 public primary schools in three different residential areas indicating different socioeconomic levels. In all, 321 (42.1%) pupils did not brush their teeth, with significant differences in the different areas. The prevalence of dental caries was 61.9%, with no significant sex difference. At 12 years, the decayed, missing and filled teeth index was 1.63, the average decay per child was 1.26 and the prevalence of dental caries was 50%, but the filling needs met was 0.01. Health education programmes to improve oral hygiene practices should be considered.