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Updated: Dec 17, 2025
Oral Health Assessment by Lay Personnel for Older Adults
Published on: February 2, 2020
National Study of Adult Oral Health 2017-18: root caries
Kostas Kapellas1, Kaye F Roberts-Thomson1
1Australian Research Centre for Population Oral Health, Adelaide Dental School, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
Background:
The prevalence of root caries in Australia is expected to increase due to an ageing population and increase in tooth retention. This report presents findings from the Australian National Study of Adult Oral Health 2017-18.
Methods:
A stratified random sample of 15 731 Australians aged ≥15 years participated in a telephone or online survey. Of those, 5022 dentate people underwent an oral assessment. Carious root surfaces were defined as ≥1 mm of affected dentine/cementum. Prevalence was defined as the percentage with ≥one natural tooth with untreated caries on root surfaces. Severity was measured as the mean number of root surfaces with caries.
Results:
Prevalence of untreated root caries in the Australian adult dentate population was 8.2% and increased with increasing age (range 2%-17.8%). Men (9.3%) compared to women (7.2%), people living in remote (18.0%) versus regional (9.3%) and major cities (7.6%), and those with the lowest household income (15.4%) compared to middle (7.6%) and highest tertile (3.2%) had untreated root caries. The average number of decayed or filled root surfaces in the Australian adult population was 1.1 (95% CI 0.9, 1.2).
Conclusions:
Root caries was associated with older age, living outside a major city and lower income.
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