title: Evaluation of the dental health of the young adult male population in Turkey.
abstract: This study aimed to determine the prevalence of dental caries in military recruits and to assess the relation of dental caries with socioeconomic and demographic factors, and sugar consumption behavior, and to generalize the findings for the young adult male population to draw a picture of dental health status of this population segment in Turkey. In this cross-sectional study conducted between August and October 2000 in a military basic training center in Turkey, 2,766 male recruits of the age of 20 were examined by dental specialists to determine their mean number of decayed, missing, or filled teeth (DMFT) scores and were administered a questionnaire for capturing their demographic characteristics and sugar consumption behavior. The mean DMFT score for the 20-year-old male population in Turkey was found to be 5.97. DMFT scores were weakly correlated with income level and urbanization. Sugar consumption was strongly correlated with DMFT scores. The mean number of teeth with fillings component was strongly correlated with income level, moderately with the subject's education, and weakly with the mother's education, father's education, and urbanization. DMFT scores for the young adult male population in Turkey were strongly associated with sugar consumption behavior, whereas they were weakly or not at all associated with demographic factors such as education level, income level, and urbanization.
authors.affiliation: Public Health Department, Gülhane Military Medical Academy, 06018, Etlik, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Süleyman
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ceylan
authors.forename: Cengiz Han
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Açikel
authors.forename: Kemal Murat
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Okçu
authors.forename: Selim
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kiliç
authors.forename: O Faruk
authors.initials: OF
authors.lastname: Tekbas
authors.forename: Kerim
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ortakoğlu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003753:Dental Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008885:Military Dentistry; D008889:Military Personnel / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015995:Prevalence; D014421:Turkey / Q000453:epidemiology