National Survey of Caries Prevalence in 6-15-year-old Children in France

Abstract

The prevalence of dental caries in France is not known on a nationwide basis, despite the fact that a number of epidemiological studies have been conducted in various parts of the country. The aim of the present study was to provide a national baseline examination of the dental health of children in 1987 since, beginning in November, 1986, the sale of fluoridated salt began in France. A multi-stage probability sample of 19,366 children was selected as representative of the 6-to-15-year-old population. The sample covered all the 95 departments of France. Teams of well-calibrated examiners were constituted in each of the sixteen Faculties of Dental Surgery of France. The prevalence of caries for each age group was determined by means of DMFT, DMFS, dft, and dfs indices. Periodontal conditions were assessed by means of the Plaque Index (Silness and Löe, 1964), the Calculus Index (Marthaler, 1966), and the Gingival Index (Löe and Silness, 1963). Calculation of the mean DMFT index showed, respectively, 0.5 and 1.0 new carious teeth per year under and over the age of 11. The mean values of the DMFT index at ages 6, 12, and 15 were, respectively, 0.5, 4.2, and 6.9. Under the age of 11, the mean DMFS index increased by one between each successive age group and by nearly two over the age of 11. The mean values of the DMFS index at ages 6, 12, and 15 were, respectively, 0.8, 7.6, and 13.0. The percentage of caries-free children decreased from 32.2% at age 6 to 7.9% at age 15.