Trends in the Use of Pit and Fissure Sealants in Adolescents and Their Impact on the Decayed, Missing, and Filled Teeth (DMFT) Index: An Ecological Study in Mexico

• Published in: Curēus (Palo Alto, CA) CA), 2024-10, Vol.16 (10), p.e72064
• Main Authors: Torres-Sánchez, Amairany M, Lucas-Rincón, Salvador E, Pontigo-Loyola, América P, Mendoza-Rodríguez, Martha, Jimenez-Gayosso, Sandra I, Casanova-Rosado, Alejandro J, Villalobos-Rodelo, Juan J, Islas-Zarazúa, Rosalina, Medina-Solís, Carlo E, Maupomé, Gerardo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Children & youth; Dental caries; Dental health; Dentistry; Ecological studies; Epidemiology/Public Health; Health services; Health surveillance; Nonparametric statistics; Oral hygiene; Public Health; Sealing compounds; Teenagers; Teeth; Trends
• ISSN: 2168-8184; 2168-8184
• DOI: 10.7759/cureus.72064

Untreated dental caries in permanent teeth is the most common health disorder. Pit and fissure sealants (PFS) are one of the effective treatment options that help prevent caries.  Objective: The objective of this study is to evaluate the temporal trends in the use of PFS among adolescents (ages 10-14) in Mexico from 2005 to 2014 and to determine their specific impact on the decayed, missing, and filled teeth (DMFT) index at the national level, using aggregated data from epidemiological surveillance. An ecological study was carried out. The data were from the Epidemiological Surveillance System of Oral Pathologies (SIVEPAB, 2005-2014). The dependent variable was the DMFT index. The independent variable was PFS prevalence during the time of the study. In the statistical analysis, the non-parametric test for trends and Spearman's correlation in Stata were used. The average DMFT was 3.43 in children 10 to 14 years old. During the 10-year study period, in no year were more than 2.5% of 12-year-old adolescents attending publicly funded dental health services in Mexico observed to have one or more teeth with PFS. The average PFS prevalence use in 12-year-old adolescents was 1.57%. No trend was observed in the use of PFS (z=-0.66, p=0.509), but there was a decrease in the DMFT index (z=-2.54, p=0.011). There was no statistically significant correlation (p>0.05) between the percentage of adolescents with at least one tooth with PFS and the average DMFT. In the present ecological study, PFS prevalence was low. While there was no discernible trend in PFS use, there was a decrease in the DMFT index, seemingly unrelated to PFS use.