On dental caries and dental erosion in Swedish young adults.
BACKGROUND
All children in Sweden are entitled to regular, free dental care up to 20 years of age. While dental caries generally continues to decline, still there is a pronounced skewness in caries prevalence. Furthermore, the reported increase in dental erosion in young adults is cause for concern.


OBJECTIVE
The aim was to study the prevalence of dental caries and dental erosion in a cohort of Swedish 20 year-olds, with special reference to the influence of previous caries experience and lifestyle as well as parental, socioeconomic and psychosocial factors.


METHODS
The study was prospective, longitudinal and cross-sectional in design and based on registration of caries lesions, dental erosion, body adiposity status, saliva sampling, interviews, and questionnaires at 20 years of age. Data were available for the same cohort at 1, 3, 6 and 15 years of age. 499 subjects (74 percent of the original cohort) were included. Five individuals were subsequently excluded, leaving a final sample of 494.


RESULTS
74 percent of the subjects had initial and/or manifest caries lesions and/or restorations. The mean number of DimFS was 5.8 and the mean number of DmFS on occlusal surfaces of molars was 1.1. There was a strong relationship between caries activity at 3 and 6 years of age and approximal caries prevalence in premolars and molars at 20 years of age. Overweight/obese individuals had significantly higher caries prevalence than normal weight individuals. Parental, socioeconomic and psychosocial factors during infancy were related to approximal caries at age 20. Dental erosion was found in 75 percent of the individuals: 18 percent of these had extensive erosion. There was a significant association between caries and dental erosion. A relationship was found between dental erosion and lifestyle factors and overweight/obesity.


CONCLUSIONS
There is a strong relationship between caries prevalence at age 20 and caries experience in early childhood. Young adults show a high prevalence of dental erosion, but the severity is generally low. Overweight and obese individuals have more caries than normal weight individuals. Parental influence during the formative years has an impact on caries prevalence in young adulthood. In this cohort, dental caries and dental erosion at age 20 are related to overweight/obesity and lifestyle factors.
Department of Cariology, Institute of Odontology Sahlgrenska Academy at University of Gothenburg Göteborg, Sweden. helen.isaksson@lj.se
Helén
H
Isaksson
D000367:Age Factors; D001294:Attitude to Health; D001641:Bicuspid / Q000473:pathology; D015992:Body Mass Index; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004245:DMF Index; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003793:Dental Restoration, Permanent / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008019:Life Style; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008963:Molar / Q000473:pathology; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology; D050177:Overweight / Q000453:epidemiology; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D015995:Prevalence; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012463:Saliva / Q000737:chemistry; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology; D014077:Tooth Erosion / Q000453:epidemiology*; D055815:Young Adult