Dental Caries on Deciduous Molars among Children Visiting Dental Outpatient Department of a Tertiary Care Centre.

INTRODUCTION: Dental caries is one of the most common, yet preventable childhood diseases. The aetiology of dental caries lies in the interplay between host, microorganism, substrate, and time. Risk factors for dental caries include physical, biological, environmental, behavioural, and lifestyle-related factors such as high numbers of cariogenic bacteria, inadequate salivary flow, insufficient fluoride exposure, poor oral hygiene, inappropriate methods of feeding infants, and poverty. The aim of the study was to find out the prevalence of dental caries on deciduous molars among children visiting dental Outpatient Department of a tertiary care centre.

METHODS: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on children who visited the dental outpatient department of Kathmandu University School of Medical Sciences, Dhulikhel Hospital from 15 June 2023 to 30 July 2023. Ethical approval was taken from the Institutional Review Committee of the same institute. A convenience sampling method was used. The point estimate was calculated at a 95% Confidence Interval.

RESULTS: The prevalence of dental caries on deciduous molars in children was 252 (93.33%)(90.35-96.30, 95% Confidence Interval). One-third of the children had visited dental clinics for the first time. Lack of topical fluoride application was seen in the majority of the children.

CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of dental caries on deciduous molars among pediatric patients was found to be higher than in other studies done in similar settings.

KEYWORDS: children; dental caries; molars; prevalence.