The Relationship of Caries Prevalence Data and Diagnosed Treatment Needs in a Child Population

Abstract

Children in a poverty-affected community served by a neighborhood health center were surveyed for caries prevalence. One hundred eighty-six of the children who later sought treatment at the health center were isolated; survey and clinical examination findings were compared. The gross data did not fall into normal distributions, and nonparametric methods of statistical analysis were used. The study indicated that primary teeth findings were more closely related in the two examinations than those of permanent teeth. Primary decayed teeth scores found in an epidemiologic survey could be useful in predicting gross restorative needs diagnosed clinically. Permanent teeth relationships (survey-chnic) were too weak to be of practical value in predicting service needs.