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The Swiss Health Surveys are conducted every 5 yr, and alternate surveys contain information on oral health. Worldwide the population is ageing and oral health is improving. The aim of this study was to identify if these trends are continuing in a relatively affluent society with low levels of edentulousness. Participants in the 1992 and 2002 surveys completed a written questionnaire including items on oral health (response rates 75% and 86% respectively). Data were weighted and bivariate analyses were performed to calculate the average number of missing teeth and the prevalence of different prosthetic dental restorations for each cohort. Over the 10-yr period the proportion of subjects retaining all natural teeth increased, and the mean number of teeth increased, on average, by 1.3. Among those who required prosthetic dental restorations, fixed restorations increased and complete denture use was reduced. Strikingly, 4.4% of this sample reported having oral implants in 2002. Greater numbers of missing teeth and a higher prevalence of use of removable prostheses were still seen in women, in those who had only completed compulsory education, in subjects from families with low income, in those who smoke, and in those who were overweight, in 2002.

The purpose of this study was to compare urinary fluoride excretion with fluoride ingestion in children who had either a low fluoride intake or received supplemental fluoride through salt or water. The urinary samples were collected in two ways. In procedure A, urine was collected in the morning, at noon and during the afternoon. This covered a continuous period of approximately 7 h from the beginning to the end of the school day. In procedure B, morning, afternoon and night samples were collected. The morning and afternoon samples were obtained under supervision at school. Procedure B was more useful than procedure A for monitoring salt fluoridation projects. Children with a history of low fluoride intake excreted a mean of 10 μg F/h during the night and the morning, but 13–16 μg F/h after the main meal. Children in a water-fluoridated town or in comprehensive salt fluoridation programs excreted between 19 and 33 μg F/h. However, after the intake of meals prepared with fluoridated salt (250 ppm F) the mean excretion of fluoride ranged between 31 and 49 μg F/h. The levels of excretion corresponded with the levels of fluoride intake and meal patterns in the various groups.

The SiC is a very useful measure of dental caries experience. On the basis of the results in the 15-year-old group, the target of an SiC below 5.0 is proposed. The decline of the SiC demonstrates that even in the high-risk children caries experience has been reduced substantially.