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-The aim of this study was to describe the dental health status of a group of Dutch 2(M0-yr-old drug addicts («=121) and to compare the results on DMFS with data of an age-comparable sample of the general adult population in the Netherlands (« = 1532). Mean DMFT of the addicted group was 16.9. ANOVA showed that the mean DMFS of the addicted group differed statistically signifi cantly from the DMFS of the general population of the same age (=52.1 versus 38.9). Statistically significant differences in DMFS were also found between the various age groups. The percentage of addicted subjects with more than cervical plaque on one or more teeth was 76.5%, 82.4% and 88.2% in the three youngest age groups. In almost all addicted subjects, bleeding of the gingiva was present. Only 36% had visited the dentist less than a year ago and 18% brushed their teeth less than once a day. It is concluded that there is a large gap in dental health status and behavior between drug addicts and the general population. Dental care as an inte gral part of the care for drug addicts is advocated.

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Patients' perceptions play an important role in assessing the quality of dental treatment. This study investigated 56 possible quality aspects on their importance as judged by regular attenders. A nationwide sample of 5000 Dutch people was contracted, 1328 persons meeting our selection criteria filled out the questionnaire and responded. The results show that hygiene of instruments and the availability of the dentist in case of emergency were considered the most important. It was concluded that in general these patients judged technical and functional aspects of dental care to be of more importance than communicative and informative aspects. Differences in perceptions were found according to sex and, to a lesser extent, to education, means of insurance and place of residence. But, on the whole, response patterns were homogeneous.