Trends in dental caries of deciduous teeth in Iran: a systematic analysis of the national and sub-national data from 1990 to 2017

Abstract

Background Dental caries is the most prevalent child affliction in the world and can be reduced through effective preventive interventions. To plan cost-effective interventions, clear and integrated data are needed. This study has been designed to overcome the lack of national trend in deciduous dental caries in Iran. Objective To estimate the dental caries trend in deciduous teeth in the Iranian population at different ages from 1990 to 2017. Methods From 1990 to 2017 a literature search about dmf and its components (decayed, missed, and filled tooth, abbreviated as dt, mt, and ft) as well as dental caries was done in the Iranian population in three English (PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus) and three national databases (in Persian). All eligible national oral health surveys in these 28 years were included. National dmft data were categorised based on age (1–4, 5–9, and 10–14), sex, province and year. The final trends were estimated using an age-spatio-temporal hierarchical model. We used the bootstrap method in multilevel models to predict the uncertainty interval (UI) of the modelled results. Finally, the estimations of dmft, dt, mt, and ft with a 95% UI were reported from 1990 to 2017. Results Almost 22% of the Iranian deciduous teeth were involved with dental caries in 1990 [dmft = 4.37; (95% UI 2.23, 6.62)] which more than 83% of it was dt [3.64 (1.53, 5.88)] and less than 7% was ft [0.30 (0.06, 0.65)]. During 1990–2017, dmft increased by more than 15% [in 2017, dmft = 5.03 (2.82, 7.29)]. The highest increase was seen in dt which was more than 17% [in 2017, dt = 4.27 (1.96, 6.57)]. Conclusion Increasing dental caries among Iranian children over 28 years shows that oral health policies in Iran need critical evaluation. We need cost-effective nationwide interventions (e.g., supervised tooth brushing and improving dietary habits) and training well-experienced intermediate manpower (e.g., dental hygienists) to reduce dental caries.

National and Subnational Trend of Dental Caries of Permanent Teeth in Iran, 1990–2017

“…Data extraction was performed after assessing the quality of data using the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) Statement. 16 , 17 Also, our study complies with the Guidelines for Accurate and Transparent Health Estimates Reporting (GATHER).…”

“…The detailed methodology of this study is available as a previously published protocol. 17 , 18 The authors have used the same methodology to estimate the trend of deciduous dental caries within the same time span that has been previously published. 17 A more comprehensive description of the data sources, quality assessment process, and statistical analysis is available in the aforementioned study.…”

“… 17 A more comprehensive description of the data sources, quality assessment process, and statistical analysis is available in the aforementioned study. 17 , 18…”

“…The complete oral examinations in addition to the records of medical, anthropometric indices, self-administered questionnaires, Food Frequency Questionnaire, and laboratory tests were gathered. 17 …”

Development and initial validation of the Comprehensive Geriatric Oral Health Assessment Tool

“…Inadequate oral health can exert detrimental effects on overall well‐being and is associated with systemic conditions, including diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, malignancies, obesity, and pulmonary conditions (Ahmad & Haque, 2021; De Angelis et al, 2018; Baldomero et al, 2019; Corbella et al, 2018; Deshpande & Amrutiya, 2017; Shoaee et al, 2023; Shoaee, Saeedi Moghaddam, et al 2022; Sofi‐Mahmudi et al, 2021). An increasing number of more than 3.5 billion individuals are grappling with oral health‐related issues.…”