A comparison between different methods for prediction of caries activity

Abstract

This study determined if the following factors, alone or in combination, could be used for prediction of caries activity: salivary Streptococcus mutans, salivary lactobacilli, buffer capacity, saliva secretion rate, salivary pH, the amount of plaque and the caries frequency. The patient material consisted of 300 children 9-12 yr old. The increment of caries after 1 and 2 yr was compared with all the above factors registered at baseline. Only the factors caries frequency and S. mutans showed a significant correlation to caries activity. In 1 test the lactobacilli count approached significance. The combination of high numbers of incipient smooth surface lesions, S. mutans and lactobacilli gave a mean value of caries activity almost 3 times that of the whole group (8.4 vs. 3.1).