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Introduction. A high prevalence of caries in children is a huge
medical, social, and economic problem. Caries, as a disease of the
modern way of life, presents a financial burden to both individuals and
society. School dental care (SDC) is the most efficient and
cost-effective method used in oral prevention programs.
Material and methods. The study was done on 2 groups of
examinees; rural inhabitants without school dental clinics in the
Surdulica municipality were enrolled in the first, and the second group
consisted of elementary school children from Niš with SDC in their
school. The patients were aged 9, 11, and 13 years, and each sample
consisted of 150 examinees. Systematic dental examination was done in
all of them, with the calculation of caries prevalence using the
standard formulas (CIP – caries index of persons, CIT – caries index of
teeth, CIA – caries index average). After teeth sanation, the average
and total costs of dental care were calculated according to the price
list of the Republic Health Insurance Fund of Serbia (RHIFS).
Results. The obtainted results demonstrated a significant
difference in the presence of caries in our examinees with and without
dental clinic in their schools. From the point of view of economics,
although we expected higher costs of the treatment of rural children
than those with SDC, the costs were lower for those without SDC, because
of the inavailability of regular dental treatment due to distance to
nearest dental clinics, and complete sanation of their mouth never took
place.
Conclusion. CIA of the children aged 9, 11, and 13 years with SDC
ranged from 3.6 to 5.15, while in those without SDC it was almost three
times higher, ranging from 9.03 to 9.37. Acquirement of healthy habits,
education, and information of children begins in the family and
continues with pre-school and school education. Lack of investing into
prevention programs and low prices of dental care services are directly
associated with increased caries prevalence.
Key words: school dental care, health education, caries
prevalence, price of dental services
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