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Declining prevalence of dental caries in school children in Singapore
1Department of Preventive Dentistry, University of Singapore, Singapore.
Objective:
Dental health surveys of school children in Singapore from past decades were reviewed to document reductions in prevalence of dental caries.
Materials And Methods:
Surveys were carried out in schools by the Dental Division, Ministry of Health in 1970, 1979, 1984, 1989 and 1994. A sample size of approximately 5000 school children representing 1.2% of the school population aged 6 to 18 years old was examined in each survey.
Results:
Survey data showed an increase in the proportion of children free of caries in the permanent dentition from 30% in 1970 to 58.7% in 1994. The DMFT index for 6 to 18 year old children has dropped from 2.98 in 1970, 2.61 in 1979, 1.97 in 1984, 1.61 in 1989 to 1.05 in 1994.
Conclusion:
Fluoridation of public water supplies together with the adoption of preventive dental health programmes by the State and professional bodies is credited as the major factor in caries reduction.
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