Indiana infant-toddler dental care survey

The purpose of this project was to survey Indiana dentists concerning dental care for Indiana infants and toddlers. Dental care issues covered were the age for a child's first dental visit, frequency of rampant or nursing caries cases examined, and dental referral sources for infants and toddlers. The survey also helped determine the dentist's perception of parents' attitudes toward services recommended by the dentist. A twelve question survey was mailed to 2006 general and pediatric dentists in the State of Indiana. The results of the survey were: 1. A large percentage of Indiana dental practitioners do not recommend the first dental visit or examine children for their dental visit until the child is more than one year of age. 2. A majority of Indiana dental practitioners see children with nursing caries or rampant caries on a monthly basis. 3. The majority of Indiana dental practitioners refer children with nursing caries to pediatric dentists for treatment. 4. Although the full treatment plan may undergo some modification based on various parental concerns, a majority of practitioners do not experience difficulty in obtaining treatment plan acceptance for nursing or rampant caries cases.