Impact of Sociodemographic Factors on Dental Caries Among Children

Objectives: To investigate the impact of sociodemographic factors on prevalence of dental caries among children. Methodology: This study included 400 children with dental caries (i.e., DMFT/deft 0) and 400 controls, who were free from the disease under study (i.e., DMFT/deft=0). Participants with fluorosis or discernable enamel hypoplasia were excluded. Patients and their parents were interviewed using a self-prepared questionnaire. Results: Mean DMFT/deft score for the present study was 2.77±2.25, with major contribution by the “D” component. The mandible was the most affected arch with the posteriors as the most affected teeth. The highest numbers of subjects in both groups aged 9-12 years, followed by 15-18 years. Females outnumbered the males in both study groups. The majority of subjects in both groups were Hindus. The propor-tion of rural subjects was higher among cases as compared with controls. Age, gender, religion and residence among cases were not significantly different from those among control subjects. Social class had significant relation with the occurrence of dental caries (p 0.001). Control subjects belonged to a better social class. The maximum number of subjects in the control group belonged to social class I (158, 39.5%), while social class III included the highest number of cases (136, 34%). Conclusions: Risk factors associated with dental caries among children are those within families with lower social classes. Recommendations: Dental health education programs should be properly planned and implemented, keeping in view the sociodemographic inequalities.