Abstract
BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Dental caries prevalence remains high in France, but data are scarce. In Strasbourg, a local program aims at improving oral health of all school children, from primary to tertiary prevention. We evaluated the oral health of Strasbourg's children over five repeated cross-sectional screenings. METHODS: We analyzed 58 287 screenings of children from 1st to 5th grade from 2018 to 2022. The presence and number of carious lesions was the main variable studied. RESULTS: Untreated dental caries were present among 34% of the children and slightly increased from 33% in 2018 to 35% in 2022 (p = 0.002). The mean number of decayed teeth was 0.85 ± 1.68 and 2.5 ± 2.04 among children with at least one. Dental caries was more prevalent among children in schools from socially disadvantaged neighborhoods (43% vs. 27%, p < 0.001), children from less advanced classes (27% in 5th grade vs. 37% in 1st grade, p < 0.001), and children with inadequate hygiene (72% vs. 28%, p < 0.001). The number of decayed teeth followed the same trend as the prevalence. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of dental caries diminishes throughout the schooling years. Socioeconomic and behavioral factors remain the major predictors of dental caries. A national study could help confirm if these trends are widespread in France.