Najiaa Alamoudi, BDS, MS, DSc;
Nathanael Salako, BDS, MSc, FDSRCPS;
Ibrahim Masoud, BDS, DMSc
King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 1540, Jeddah 21441, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. 

An epidemiological survey on dental caries was carried out to determine its prevalence and intraoral distribution pattern in Saudi children residing in leddah. A total of 3,318 children, aged 6-14 years, were examined from different geographical areas of the city. The results of this study showed that the mean dmft in this population was 2.16. The age-group 6-9 years showed the highest prevalence with the primary molars, especially the second primary molars, being mostly affected. There was intra- and inter-arch similarity in the susceptibility of each tooth type to decay. A larger proportion of mandibular primary molars examined were treated compared to the maxillary primary molars. The need for dental, educational and treatment program in schools is stressed.

Saudi Dental Journal 1995;7(1):23-28