Relationship between caries prevalence and fissure sealants among 12-year-old German children at three educational strata
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 21, 2026
Roughness Impact of Piezoelectric Dental Scaler on Two Distinct Flowable Composite Filling Materials
Published on: January 10, 2025
Bodo Klemme1, Paul Tramini, Uwe Niekusch
1Poliklinik für Zahnerhaltungskunde, Universität Heidelberg.
Objectives:
To investigate the relationship between caries prevalence and fissure sealants among 12-year-old German children at three educational levels.
Methods:
In 1998 a cross-sectional investigation which comprised 60% of the 12-year-old children was performed in Heidelberg, Germany. The children attended three types of schools: Gymnasium, Hauptschule, and Realschule. The children received a dental examination. Teeth with caries experience were recorded according to WHO criteria, and teeth with a fissure sealant were also noted.
Results:
The mean number of fissure sealed teeth per child was 2.49 (Gymnasium), 2.31 (Realschule) and 1.17 (Hauptschule). In children who attended a Gymnasium the mean DMFT scores were the lowest (0.87 in children with fissure sealant and 1.31 in children without fissure sealant). The corresponding values for children who attended a Realschule were distinctly higher. The highest mean DMFT scores (2.14 and 3.48, resp.) were observed in children who attended a Hauptschule. The proportion of caries-free children was higher in all three types of school when fissure sealants were present.
Conclusion:
In spite of a high prevalence of fissure sealants there is an unequal caries experience among 12-year-old children from different educational strata. To improve this situation, persons important to promotion of dental health should do all their part to ensure that fissure sealants are applied to permanent teeth as early as possible, especially when children have caries experience in their primary dentition.
Related Concept Videos
01:28Development of the Oral Microbiota
01:15Teeth
In the bud stage, the tooth germ (an aggregation of cells) starts to form in the developing jawbone. During the cap stage, the tooth germ differentiates into enamel organ, dental papilla, and dental sac, which will later develop into the tooth's enamel, dentin and...
01:21Tooth Anatomy
The Crown, Neck, and Root
The visible part of the tooth is referred to as the crown. It's covered by enamel, the hardest substance in the human body. The crown is uniquely shaped for each type of tooth, allowing for different functions such as cutting, tearing, or grinding food.