Dental caries and strontium concentration in drinking water and surface enamel

We investigated the possible cariostatic effect of strontium in the absence of effective amounts of fluoride by relating the DMFT index of the population to the strontium and fluoride concentrations in drinking water and enamel surfaces. The epidemiological survey was conducted in two neighboring districts in the northwest part of Greece, involving 582 children ranging in age from 11 to 14. The average DMFT values were 5.26 in the high-strontium (2.9-7 ppm Sr) area and 6.95 in the low-strontium (0.2-1.3 ppm Sr) area, while fluoride was low (less than 0.06 ppm) in both districts. Further, the average strontium concentration in surface enamel was higher in the high-strontium area.