Comparison of DMFT index in retarded 8-12 year-old students with healthy subjects in Zahedan from 2013 to 2014

Background and Objective: Dental caries is the most common human infection. The most important indicator of dental caries is DMFT. Control of dental caries requires prevention programs. Prevention needs full knowledge of the possibilities that can be achieved through epidemiological studies. The aim of this study was to compare DMFT index in 8-12 year retarded students in special schools in Zahedan city with healthy subjects and evaluation of its relationship with factors such as age, sex, and educational level.

Materials and Methods: This descriptive, cross-sectional study was performed on 200 students including 100 healthy students and 100 mental retarded students. 50% of them were female and 50% were male. The sampling was randomized stratified. A questionnaire was completed for each student and DMFT index was measured by clinical examination according to WHO criteria. The data was analyzed using SPSS19 and t- test and ANOVA. Significant level was 0.05 and correlation coefficient Pearson was obtained.

Results: The mean DMFT index was 2.92 ± 1.67 in normal students and 4.03 ± 1.92 in retarded students. DMFT in mentally retarded children had a significant relationship with age. In mentally retarded children, DMFT had no significant correlation with other studied variants.

Conclusion: Based on this study, the Health index of mentally retarded children is lower than WHO standards.