Dental caries prevalence and treatment level of neglected children at two child guidance centers

Abstract Objective Detailed evidence of a relationship between maltreated children and dental caries is limited. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of dmft and DMFT, and the characteristics of dental treatment level of children at two child guidance centers (CGC). Subject and methods A total of 166 children (mean age: 11.6 y ± 2.8) staying at two CGCs were examine, and their results were compared with those of the Survey of Dental Disease (SDD) carried out by the Japanese Society for Oral Health. Results Mean numbers of dental caries were 5.70 at the CGCs and 2.25 in the SDD. "Completely treated" children were 21.7% of total participants in the SDD, but only 3.6% at the CGCs. In addition, 7.0% of participants were "untreated" in the SDD, but 41.0% at the CGCs. The percentage of children without dental caries was 18.7% at the CGCs and 45.7% in the SDD. These differences between the CGCs and in the SDD were statistically significant. Conclusions Our results indicate that, due to a lack of daily oral care, dental caries are significantly more prevalent in children at CGCs. CGCs may be good places to improve neglected children's dental caries and oral health care.