RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the prevalence of caries in the permanent 1st molars of a group of 9 to 10-year-old children, and to determine the long-term effect of a mother-child preventive dental program (PDP) that started when the women were pregnant and continued until the children were 6 years of age. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The permanent 1st molars of 37 children in the PDP group were evaluated for caries, both clinically and radiographically, and compared with those of a control group of 42 children who had not participated in the PDP. RESULTS: Of children in the PDP group, 70% were caries free compared to 33% in the control group (p<0.001). Of permanent 1st molars in the PDP group, 87% were caries-free compared to 61% in the control group (p<0.001). The mean DFS of the PDP children 10 years of age was 0.519+/-0.93 versus 1.57+/-1.38 for the control children (p=0.002). CONCLUSIONS: Examination of children 4 years after discontinuation of a caries preventive program reflected a long-term reduction in the DFS score of permanent 1st molars.
Assuntos
Cárie Dentária/prevenção & controle , Educação em Saúde Bucal , Centros de Saúde Materno-Infantil , Odontologia Preventiva/métodos , Estudos de Casos e Controles , Criança , Estudos de Coortes , Índice CPO , Feminino , Humanos , Masculino , Dente MolarRESUMO
The objective was to evaluate the clinical performance of a therapeutic sealant to arrest the progression of noncavitated approximal posterior carious lesions. The study population comprised 50 adolescents in whom bitewing radiographs had been taken for diagnosis of caries. Approximal noncavitated lesions in premolars and molars (4d-7m) were selected. One group (n=17) had a sealant placed after tooth separation on all enamel lesions. A second group (n=7) received sealant and fluoride varnish in a split-mouth design. A control group (n=26) received a standard fluoride varnish treatment without tooth separation. Follow-up radiographs were taken after 2 years and were analyzed together with the baseline radiographs in a blind study setting. About 93% of the sealed initial carious lesions showed no progression. The corresponding value for the fluoride varnish control group was 88%. In the split-mouth study, 92 and 88% of the surfaces with enamel caries showed no progression after sealant or fluoride varnish treatment, respectively. The difference between the two treatment procedures was not statistically significant. The incidence rate for the transition from enamel caries to dentin caries or fillings was 3.5-3.9 surfaces/100 years in the sealant groups and 5.9-6.1 surfaces/100 years in the fluoride varnish groups. The results show the potential of sealants to act as a noninvasive treatment of early approximal enamel lesions.