Evaluation of Decay and Filling Dental Index in the 7 Years Old Children of Iran and Its Relationship with Economic Inequity

Abstract

Objectives: To determine the status of tooth decay and filling, in 7-year-old Iranian children, as well as a relationship with economic inequity Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 8 cities of Iran using random cluster sampling. In the selected cities, a number of primary schools were considered and all first grade students were evaluated. The data of the dental status of the students were collected from the health IDs completed in the beginning of the educational year. Results: Of 4614 selected students, 4106 participated in the study (response rate = 89%). The mean number of decayed and filled teeth was 1.7 (1.51 - 1.88) and 0.26 (0.22 - 0.29), respectively. The mean number of decayed (P = 0.330) and filled (P = 0.148) teeth showed no difference between boys and girls. The distribution of the number of decayed (1.16 to 2.06) and filled (0.15 to 0.4) teeth was different in different cities (P < 0.001). Parental education had an inverse and direct relationship with the number of decayed and filled teeth, respectively (P < 0.001). Moreover, 41.62% (37.36 - 45.88) and 16.56% (14.46 - 18.66) of 7-year-old Iranian children had at least 1 decayed and filled tooth, respectively. The concentration index was 0.016 (0.012) for decayed and 0.165 (0.020) for filled teeth. Conclusions: We evaluated the dental status of 7-year-old Iranian children in this study for the first time. According to our findings, 58% of 7-year-old children have dental problems such as carries as well as fillings. Economic inequity, in the distribution of filled teeth, indicated a high number of filled teeth in the wealthy class of the society.