Oral health gains ground but decay in the youngest rises report

Atlanta鈥擳ooth decay among the nation’s youngest children is increasing against the grain of improving oral health for youths, adolescents and most adults, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports.

The proportion of young children who had ever had dental caries in their primary teeth increased from 18 percent during 1988-1994 to 24 percent during 1999-2004, said a CDC analysis of data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, an important source of information on oral health and dental care in the United States since the early 1970s.

The trend among 2-4 year olds is actually moving away from a national Healthy People 2010 target of 11 percent for this age group. Healthy People 2010 is the third in a series of public-private sector health promotion, disease prevention and health access goals and objectives for the United States.

Commenting on the report, Dr. Lindsey Robinson, chair of the ADA Council on Access, Prevention and Interprofessional Relations, said, “These data reinforce the importance of the age one dental visit. We need to help parents understand how to prevent dental caries among infants and toddlers.”

CDC’s look at tooth decay among young children expands on earlier reported Trends in Oral Health Status: United States, 1988-1994 and 1999-2004 covering all ages. That report concludes that dental caries continues to decrease in the permanent dentition for youths, adolescents and most adults. The “Quick Stats” data and chart were published in CDC’s Jan. 23, 2009, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report .