Aim The aim of this study was to determine dental caries increment
in women after four years associated with caries risk factors according
to the Cariogram during pregnancy.
Materials and methods Study design: The study population
consisted of 96 pregnant women between 20 and 42 years of age at
the start of the study. After four years, 80 women (83.33% recall rate)
were re-examined by the baseline examiner using the same procedure
employed at baseline. Caries prevalence was registered according to the
WHO criteria and presented by the Decayed Missing and Filled Teeth
(DMFT) index. Saliva tests were carried out according to instructions
of the manufacturer. Nine factors/variables were entered into the
Cariogram to obtain an individual caries risk profile. The chance of
avoiding caries was scored into the five Cariogram risk categories.
Results Study participants at higher-risk categories developed more
new caries lesions than those at lower risk of caries. Participants with
the highest DMFT index according to the Cariogram had the highest
caries-related risk factors at baseline, i.e. they had the highest risk for
the onset of caries and the highest caries increment after four years.
Conclusion The results suggest that the dental caries increment
in women after four years is significantly associated with caries risk
factors according to the Cariogram during pregnancy.
