THE PREVALENCE OF DENTAL-CARIES AND NECES SARY TREATMENT IN 6 TO 12 YEARS OLD SCHOOLCHILDREN IN BRAZIL, 1994

Objective The prevalence of dental caries and needs of treatment among schoolchildren in Goiania-GO, middle-west of Brazil was assessed. Met hodology The study population consisted of 6-12-yr-old schoolchildren (n=1,400) attending public schools located in the urban area of the ci ty, where the wafer-supply had been fluoridated for 9 years. Results M ean dmf-t and DMF-T for the total sample were 2.19 and 2.86, respectiv ely showing a reduction of 57.1% in the DMF-T as compared to the regio nal data from the national survey carried out in 1986. At age 12 DMF-T was 4.59, which is above the acceptable level according to the FDI/WH O goal for the year 2000. Percentage of caries-free schoolchildren war very low at all ages (11% of the total sample). The most significant need was for restorative treatment in the treatment deciduous dentitio n at all ages and in the permanent dentition from age 9. Conclusion It was concluded that the prevalence of dental caries among schoolchildr en in Goiania-GO is high, comparable to the situation in most Latin Am erican countries and poor regions of developed countries. The results indicate the need for oral health education and preventive programs ta rgeted at the underlying causes of the disease, in the population.