Study: Over 20% Of Children Have Decay By First Dental Visit

DrBicuspid  (10/7, Madans) reports a new study has found that “more than 20% of children need restorative treatment by the time of their first dental exam,” and “the risk of treatment also increases with each year a child waits to see the dentist.” The study included “706,636 privately insured children ages 6 months to 6 years old to shed light on the relationship between the age at first visit and restorative treatment needs.” Early childhood caries “remains the most common, preventable infectious disease among children in the United States, with 21.4% of children aged 2 through 5 years having caries and 8.8% having untreated caries,” wrote the group. The findings were published in The Journal of the American Dental Association.