Dental caries experience using the Significant Caries Index among 12 year old school children in Karnataka, India

Objectives: The present study was done to describe the dental caries experience using the Significant Caries Index (SiC Index) among 12 year old school children in Karnataka, India. Methods: Individuals were sorted according to their DMFT values. The one third of the population with the highest caries score was selected and the mean DMFT for this subgroup calculated. Results: A total of 837 school children in 9 schools were examined. The mean decayed teeth were 1.07, the mean missing teeth 0.02 and mean filled teeth 0.01. The overall SiC Index score was found to be 2.85 ± 1.18. Conclusion: This study has shown that groups of individuals suffer from a high prevalence of dental caries even if the mean DMFT for that population is low. SiC Index is therefore an useful indicator and helps in targeting preventive programs to the at-risk groups in the community.