Dental caries and treatment needs in street children in Toluca, Mexico.
OBJECTIVE
To assess dental caries (deft and DMFT) and treatment needs, in street children from the city of Toluca in Mexico.


METHODS
After informed consent from their parents, guardian or legal representative, 310 street children, 0 to 17 years of age, from Toluca in the state of Mexico, were evaluated. Caries and treatment needs were recorded according to 1997 WHO criteria. The oral examination was carried out on site in daylight.


RESULTS
For the population from which the sample was derived, the caries prevalence was 94.96%, the mean DMFT was 6.0 +/- 4.6 (5.8 decayed), while deft was 3.5 +/- 3.7 (3.4 decayed). Treatment needs in the deciduous dentition revealed that 43.9% of teeth did not require any treatment, 20% needed fissure sealants, 19% required one surface restoration and 13.19% needed restoration in two or more surfaces. In the permanent dentition, the treatment needs were as follows: 51.2% teeth did not need any treatment, 22.9% needed fissure sealants, 18.4% required one surface restoration and 5.3% needed restoration in two or more surfaces.


CONCLUSIONS
These findings illustrate the high prevalence of caries in street children in the city of Toluca. There is an enormous need for dental treatment; sealant applications were the treatment most in need. The data can serve as a platform to implement preventive and restorative dental health programmes that meet the needs of Mexican street children,
Contreras-Bulnes
R
R
Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Toluca, México. rcb@uaemex.mx
Reyes-Silveyra
L J
LJ
Fuentes-Alvarez
T
T
Escamilla-Rodriguez
F
F
Rodríguez-Vilchis
L E
LE
D000293:Adolescent; D017677:Age Distribution; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004245:DMF Index; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003793:Dental Restoration, Permanent; D005260:Female; D018453:Homeless Youth; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008800:Mexico / Q000453:epidemiology; D020380:Needs Assessment; D010895:Pit and Fissure Sealants; D015995:Prevalence; D017678:Sex Distribution
D010895:Pit and Fissure Sealants