Prevalence of early childhood caries among children attending anganwadis in Davangere City: A cross sectional survey

Abstract

Background: Early childhood caries (ECC) is a public health problem and children from low-income and minority families are particularly vulnerable to it. Aim: This study aims to assess prevalence of ECC among children attending Anganwadis in Davangere City. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was carried out among 349 children aged 2–5 years selected via cluster random sampling, attending Anganwadis in Davangere city. Caries experience was assessed using decayed missing filled teeth (dmft) index (the WHO-criteria) and ECC was recorded. IBM SPSS Statistics software version 19 was used for statistical analysis and significance level was set at P < 0.05. Descriptive data were generated in percentages. Chi-square test, Kuskall–Wallis test and Man–Whitney U-test were used for statistical analyses. Results: A total of 349 children, with mean age 3.8 ± 1.3 years, were examined. Among them, 47.7% were boys and 52.3% girls. The prevalence of ECC was 52.9%. The prevalence of ECC increased with the increasing age. It was significantly higher among 5-year-old female children compared to males (P = 0.02). The mean dmft of study population was 1.16 ± 1.54. There was only one detectable filled tooth among study population. Conclusion: The high prevalence of ECC (52.9%), along with very low prevalence of filled teeth among the Anganwadi children of Davangere city is a cause of concern. It suggests unmet dental treatment needs. Therefore, there is a need for caries preventive and treatment programs for this section of children.