Kelsey H Jordan1, Gerald McGwin2, Noel K Childers3. 1. Dr. Jordan is a postdoctoral scholar, Division of Population Sciences, Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA;, Email: Kelsey.Jordan@osumc.edu. 2. Dr. McGwin is a pro- fessor and vice chair, Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health. 3. Dr. Childers is professor emeritus, Department of Pediatric Dentistry, School of Dentistry, both at The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Ala., USA.
Abstract
Purpose: The preferred epidemiological caries assessment method is the decayed, missing, and filled surfaces (dmfs) score, which records all crowned/missing primary teeth's surfaces as carious. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the dmfs score's accuracy in capturing caries-affected (versus treated) surfaces of crowned/extracted teeth. Methods: A high-caries risk cohort of children, eight to 18 months old at baseline, were recruited from a nonfluoridated, rural, minority, and low-income community. Oral examinations occurred every 12 months for five years, identifying children with at least one caries-related crown/extraction (N equals 45). Observed scoring counted all crowned/extracted surfaces as carious. Private dentists' clinical records were also reviewed to determine how many surfaces were carious at crown/extraction appointments (53 actual scores for n equals 19). Differences in actual and observed scoring were evaluated (sign test; α equals 0.05 with two-tailed P-values). Results: Most children in the study group had more than one crown/extraction. Actual scoring revealed two to three fewer carious surfaces per tooth than observed scoring; cumulatively, observed scoring added two to 27 more surface counts per participant (P<0.001). Conclusions: Observed scoring exaggerated early childhood caries burdens when crowns/extractions were prevalent. Modified dmfs scoring, individualized or population-corrected crown/extraction counts, could more accurately estimate disease.
Purpose: The preferred epidemiological caries assessment method is the decayed, missing, and filled surfaces (dmfs) score, which records all crowned/missing primary teeth's surfaces as carious. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the dmfs score's accuracy in capturing caries-affected (versus treated) surfaces of crowned/extracted teeth. Methods: A high-caries risk cohort of children, eight to 18 months old at baseline, were recruited from a nonfluoridated, rural, minority, and low-income community. Oral examinations occurred every 12 months for five years, identifying children with at least one caries-related crown/extraction (N equals 45). Observed scoring counted all crowned/extracted surfaces as carious. Private dentists' clinical records were also reviewed to determine how many surfaces were carious at crown/extraction appointments (53 actual scores for n equals 19). Differences in actual and observed scoring were evaluated (sign test; α equals 0.05 with two-tailed P-values). Results: Most children in the study group had more than one crown/extraction. Actual scoring revealed two to three fewer carious surfaces per tooth than observed scoring; cumulatively, observed scoring added two to 27 more surface counts per participant (P<0.001). Conclusions: Observed scoring exaggerated early childhood caries burdens when crowns/extractions were prevalent. Modified dmfs scoring, individualized or population-corrected crown/extraction counts, could more accurately estimate disease.
Authors: Fatmah N AlMotawah; Sharat Chandra Pani; Tala AlKharashi; Saleh AlKhalaf; Mohammed AlKhathlan; Fahad AlSultan; Ahmad AlMughirah Journal: Int J Dent Date: 2020-10-22