Caries Distribution, Prevalence, and Treatment Needs among 12–15-Year-Old Secondary School Students in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria

Abstract

Objective. There is a change in the trends and distribution of dental caries in established and nonestablished market economies. The aim of this study was to describe caries distribution, prevalence, and treatment needs among school children in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Materials and Methods. The study was a cross-sectional survey of students between the ages of 12 and 15 years. Data was collected using a structured questionnaire and clinical oral examination. Analysis of data was done using statistical package for social science version 20.0. Association between variables was tested using chi-square, independent t-test, and one-way analysis of variance. Results. The study population consisted of 195 school children of mean age 13.21±1.09 years. The prevalence of dental caries was 15.4% (n=30). The mean DMFT score for the entire group was 0.25±0.66. Dental caries occurred more significantly (P<0.005) on the mandible (66.7%) than on the maxilla (33.3%) and was significantly (P<0.005) more prevalent on the first molars (66.7%) than on the second molars (26.6%). Conclusion. The number of untreated dental caries was high and the restorative index was low among the students. The overall caries prevalence and mean DMFT were low even when compared to other studies in similar populations in Nigeria.