More Young Children Suffering From Tooth Decay

But report finds some signs of improvement in dental care.

By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter
Monday, April 30, 2007; 12:00 AM

Copyright © 2007 ScoutNews, LLC. All rights reserved.

MONDAY, April 30 (HealthDay News) -- Most Americans are taking better care of their teeth, resulting in improved dental health, but tooth decay in baby teeth among children is increasing, according to a new report.

In fact, decay in baby teeth among 2- to 5-year-olds has increased from 24 percent to 28 percent from 1988 to 2004, the federal report found.

In addition, a racial and ethnic divide exists when it comes to dental health.

"This report shows that while we are continuing to make strides in prevention of tooth decay, this disease clearly remains a problem for some racial and ethnic groups, many of whom have more treated and untreated tooth decay compared with other groups," Dr. Bruce A. Dye, the report's lead author, said in a prepared statement.

Dye was to present the findings Monday at the annual meeting of the American Association for Public Health Dentistry in Denver. The report, titled Trends in Oral Health Status -- United States, 1988-1994 and 1999-2004, is based on data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics

The report does highlight significant improvement in several areas. Tooth decay in permanent teeth has decreased for children, teens, and adults. And, 38 percent of children and teens aged 12 to 19 have had dental sealants, a plastic coating that protects against decay.

Yet, the report notes gaps in dental care based on race and ethnicity. For example, 31 percent of Mexican-American children ages 6 to 11 had decay in their permanent teeth, compared with 19 percent of non-Hispanic white children.

There were also income-related disparities in care. For families with incomes below the federal poverty line, 12 percent of children ages 6 to 11 had untreated tooth decay, compared with 4 percent of children from families above the poverty line.

"Although preventive measures, such as dental sealants, have been widely available for years, we need to focus our efforts on reaching children living in poverty who stand to benefit the most from them," Dr. William R. Maas, a dentist and director of the CDC's Division of Oral Health, said in a prepared statement. "This report challenges us to increase our efforts to reach those most in need with effective preventive measures, and to provide guidance and health education to others, for instance, smokers whose oral health can greatly benefit from quitting."