Dental caries and Cariostat test in preschool children

The aim of this study was to investigate the caries status and susceptibility of children in preschool age. Sixty one children ages between 3 to 5 years (mean age 4.38 +/- 0.71) participated in this study. Caries status was assessed according to WHO criteria, and caries susceptibility by using the Cariostat test. The mean df-t was found to be 2.28 +/- 0.71 (df-s 6.26 +/- 11.92) and 31 children were caries-free. Cariostat scores were 1.75, 2.00, 2.16 in the 3, 4, and 5 year age groups respectively. There were no significant differences in caries status or Cariostat scores between boys and girls. The df-t for the 5 year age group was significantly higher than that for the 3 year age groups (p < 0.05). The test found 77% of the children to have a high caries risk (Cariostat score > 2.0).