Prevalence of Caries in Anterior Teeth in Adults; An Epidemiology Study

Background and Aim: Dental caries is a multifactorial, widespread chronic infection of the enamel, or dentin caused by plaque.
Susceptible tooth surfaces, saliva, oral micro flora, and dietary carbohydrates are the main factors involved in the development
of dental caries. Treatment and prevention management of caries among the population is measured in terms of prevalence and
severity of anterior teeth caries. The present study's aim was to determine the prevalence of anterior teeth caries among adults.
Methodology: This epidemiological study was conducted on 1276 patients reporting for treatment at the College of Dentistry,
Jouf University, Saudi Arabia from January 2021 to July 2021. Detection of carries was carried out as per World Health
Organization (WHO). Based on demographic details such as age, gender, occupation, and diet, the prevalence of carious
anterior teeth was assessed. All the data was coded and analyzed using SPSS version 24.
Results: Out of 1276 patients, male and female patients were 814 (63.8%) and 462 (36.2%) respectively. The incidence of
carious anterior teeth was 263 (32.2%) in males whereas 149 (32.3%) in female patients. The overall incidence of carious
anterior teeth was 32.25%being prevalent in male patients with an age range from 21 years to 30 years. A significant
association was found among carious anterior teeth, age (p<0.05), diet (p<0.05), location (p<0.05), teeth malalignment (p<0.05),
and oral hygiene (p<0.05). However, anterior decay had no significant association with gender (p=0.673) and occupation
(p=.167). Maxillary central incisors were the commonly affected teeth in most cases.
Conclusion: Our study found that the prevalence of carious anterior teeth was 32.25% and Maxillary central incisors were the
commonly affected teeth in most cases. A significant association was found among carious anterior teeth, age, location, oral
hygiene, diet, and teeth malalignment. But no significant association among carious anterior teeth, occupation, and gender.