Journal of Dental Research, Vol 69, 1270-1274, Copyright © 1990 by International & American Associations for Dental Research Online Journals
Prevalence and need for replacement of amalgam and composite restorations in Dutch adults
H. J. Kroeze, A. J. Plasschaert, M. A. van 't Hof and G. J. Truin
Department of Cardiology and Endodontology, University of Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
In 1986, the first nationwide epidemiological survey of adult oral health
and attitudes to oral health care was carried out in The Netherlands. One
of the aims of this study was to evaluate the prevalence and the quality
(in terms of need for replacement) of amalgam and composite restorations in
the Dutch adult population. A group of 600 dentate individuals, 20-44 years
of age, was examined. Stratified cluster sampling included as factors age,
gender, socio-economic status, and area of residence. Two additional
parameters were studied: frequency of visiting a dentist and type of health
insurance. Oral examinations consisted of direct (mirror and explorer) and
indirect (color slides and bite-wing radiographs) observations with use of
well-defined criteria. On average, 13.4 restorations per individual were
present, of which 23.3% were classified as unsatisfactory. A great
difference in prevalence and quality data was found among several types of
restorations. Test results (ANOVA) for effects of age, gender,
socio-economic status, area of residence, frequency of visiting a dentist,
and insurance on the prevalence of (un)satisfactory restorations resulted
nearly always in significant effects of only age and frequency of visits to
a dentist. There was a tendency (p less than 0.05) for the prevalence of
(un)satisfactory restorations to be higher with increasing age.(ABSTRACT
TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
