Archives

Introduction: Dental caries is the most common oral condition, causing direct impact on quality of life. Ascribed to poor access to oral health care services and inadequate exposure to fluoride, the prevalence of oral diseases is increasing in most developing countries.

Objective: To assess molar caries among different age groups, gender, and tooth types in patients visiting a tertiary centre.

Materials and Method: An analytical, cross-sectional study was conducted after ethical clearance at Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, College of Medical Sciences Teaching Hospital. Data from January 2018 to January 2020 were conveniently retrieved from 2437 dental records manually. The records were reviewed by three examiners separately to collect information on age, gender, tooth, and distribution of caries in maxilla and mandible. Patients with caries in permanent first and second molars were included. Records of patients with incomplete records or missing teeth were excluded. Data were entered in a data spreadsheet and subjected to statistical analysis using SPSS.v20.

Result: Out of 2437, molar caries was seen in 1185 (48.63%) patients. Prevalence of caries was found to be significantly higher (536, 45.23%) in early age group of 16-24 years. Mandibular arch demonstrated notably higher caries prevalence compared to maxillary arch and first molar had considerably more caries rate compared to second molar in all age groups.

Conclusion: Permanent first molar in early age group presented higher caries prevalence with more possibility of caries in mandibular arch. This finding can help in formulation of various preventive strategies.

Age; dental caries; first molar; gender; second molar.