Dental caries experience of 5-year-old children related to their parents' education levels: a study in an Arab community in Israel

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Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the influence that parents' education may have on the prevalence of dental caries in young children. The study was conducted on 210 kindergarten children aged 5 years in an Arab village. The presence of caries was determined according to the WHO criteria, with an explorer and a dental mirror under natural light. The education of the parents was assessed on a scale of 1-6 according to information obtained from a questionnaire to the parents. The results of this study showed that children of highly educated parents had relatively low dental caries experience. The influence of the mothers was apparent at a lower educational level than that of the fathers. In this population only 0.6% of the dental treatment needs were met. Of the kindergarten children 99.5% had experienced caries. The caries experience was extremely high: the mean dmfs was 17.7 (+/- 12.15), and the means dmft 8.04 (+/- 8.37).