Effect of Age and Gender on DMFT Index of Undergraduate Dental Students in Lahore Medical and Dental College

Introduction: Dental caries is an infectious micro-biological disease resulting in localized destruction of the calcified tissue.1 Decyed, missing and filled teeth index (DMFT) have been used to measure caries sta-tus. Objective: The purpose of this study was to deter-mine the effect of age and gender on dental caries status. Study Design: Cross sectional survey. Place of Study: Indoor Department of Operative den-tistry in Lahore Medical and Dental College. Patients and Methods: In a total of 310 dental stu-dents with age ranging from 17 – 24 years were included in the study. The duration of study was 6 months (March 2008 – August 2008). The students consent was taken before the commencement of the study. Students undergoing orthodontic treatment, ameloge-nesis imperfecta, and dentinogenesis imperfecta were excluded from the study. Decayed – missing – filled teeth index (DMFT) was used to measure caries status and the values were interpreted according to DMFT scoring scale. Results: The mean DMFT score among 17 – 19 was (mean ± SD 1.42 ± 0.52), and in 20 – 24 it was (1.35 ± 0.54). After stratification of gender, mean DMFT for male student was 1.35 ± 0.51 with decay (D) compo-nent of 0.65 ± 0.61 and filled component of 0.69 ± 0.68. The Mean DMFT for female was 1.40 ± 0.55 with decay (D) component of 0.48 ± 0.61 and filled component of 0.91 ± 0.68. Conclusion: The mean DMFT score difference was not significant between the two age groups (1.42 ± 0.52 vs. 1.35 ± 0.54; p = 0.365). There was significant difference in mean DMFT score in male dental stu-dents as they pass through different academic levels. There was no significant difference in mean DMFT score (p = 0.51) among female students.