Abstract— All the papers presented at the conference are reviewed and comparisons are made with past beliefs on the topic. Early childhood caries (ECC) is a serious public health problem in disadvantaged communities in both developing and industrialized countries in which under‐nutrition is common. ECC involves the maxillary primary incisors within months after their eruption and spreads rapidly to involve other primary teeth. The early implantation of mutans streptococci, the use of a feeding bottle containing sugary solutions and prolonged breast‐feeding, especially at night, are important predisposing factors. Attention is drawn to the need for more research into the factors which determine the resistance of the enamel and particularly the elucidation of the relationship established in several countries between early enamel caries, enamel hypoplasia, and perinatal under‐ or malnutrition. Primary preventive measures should be applied during the ante‐ and immediate post‐natal periods. Secondary preventive measures include the use of chemotherapeutic agents such as fluoride, and antimicrobials. The most appropriate tertiary preventive measure is the atraumatic restorative technique (ART). Broadly based committees should be established by governments to address the issues of caries risk in young children. Parents and all personnel involved in infant health and welfare should be shown how to recognize early signs of the condition, as well as to promote early intervention and referral.

Thailand has a highly developed system of primary health care. Using the criteria and methods recommended by W.H.O., an oral health survey was undertaken of 2111 subjects from six districts with different types of dental service including two with no systematic service and two with ICOH-trained primary oral health care personnel - examiners, health educators and village scalers. Significant differences between districts, unrelated to the type of dental service, were found in the percent of children with caries-free primary teeth and in mean dmft at ages 5 and 6; and at ages 5-6, 12, 17-18 and 35-44 (but not 15-16) in the percent of subjects with caries-free permanent teeth. The prevalence of DMFT was uniformly low ranging from 0.0 at age 6 to 1.18 at age 35-44. There was an inverse relationship between CFI and DMFT in subjects aged 12-18 and a direct relationship between dental fluorosis and the fluoride content of well-water used for cooking and drinking. The most conspicuous feature of the data was the much greater prevalence of caries in the primary dentition with heavy involvement of the maxillary incisors. Comparisons with the Thai and International Goals for Oral Health by the Year 2000 show that all except two districts have already achieved the Thai, but not the FDI/WHO, Goal for 5-6-yr-olds with caries-free primary teeth and, except for one district, all of the national and international goals with respect to the status of the permanent dentition have also been achieved.

The results of an oral health survey in five countries by four examiners showed marked between‐examiner variation in the interpretation of diagnostic criteria for the assessment of periodontal disease. A new method for the assessment of periodontal disease is described. It is a modification of the Periodontal Screening Examination of O'Leary and is designed to distinguish four degrees of periodontal disease in terms of preventive or curative action required for the problem. In a second survey using this method two examiners obtained closely comparable results in their assessment of calculus, gingivitis and periodontal pockets.

– The results of an evaluation of the W.H.O. recommendations for the assessment of dental caries confirmed that the method and the criteria are satisfactory. Attention is drawn to the limitations of df and DMF indices for predicting requirements for dental treatment, and the efficacy of a simple system for collecting information on requirements for care is described.

As part of an oral health survey concerned with the evaluation of a collaborative primary oral health care program, the CPITN system was used to determine the periodontal status and treatment needs of 2009 Thai people aged 12-44 yr. Calculus dominated the CPITN scores. The percentage of persons with healthy periodontal tissues was small, ranging from 0.7% at age 35-44 to 4.1% at age 12. Ranges for other highest scores were bleeding-0.4% at age 35-44 yr to 6.1% at age 12 yr; calculus-62% at age 35-44 yr to 92.6% at age 17-18 yr. Pocketing did not occur to any significant extent until age 35-44 where 23.9% had 3-5 mm pockets and 12.8% had pockets 6 mm or deeper. 15-18-yr-olds who had received prior care from a Village Scaler had a significantly higher number and proportion of healthy sextants than those who had not received such care. No such effect was demonstrated in 35-44-yr-olds. The need for caution in the interpretation of this result is stressed. Attention is drawn to the desirability of differentiating between supra- and sub-gingival calculus in the CPITN scoring system and to the excessive treatment requirements that arise from classifying everyone with calculus as requiring prophylaxis and scaling. A great deal of improvement will need to be affected if the Thai national and global goals for periodontal health are to be achieved in the districts covered by this survey.