EVALUASI DAN PENGENDALIAN FAKTOR RISIKO KARIES

Abstract

Dental caries is a multifactorial disease that it is a preventable one. The assessment and control of the risk factors, therefore, plays a significant role in evading the development of caries. Risk factors include medical and dental history, clinical, radiographic, and laboratory factors. Medical and dental history factors consist of social-economic status of the patients, age, gender, oral hygiene, fluoride exposure, the dietary carbohydrate, civilizaiton, general health, and medicaiton. Clinical factors to be assessed are dental plaque, the susceptible site of the tooth, the existing restoration, and orthodontic appliances. The laboratory factors evaluate the conditions of the saliva i.e. the buffer capacity, flow rate, and the presence of caries-related microorganisms such as mutans streptococci, lactobacilli, or yeast. As caries is caused by three main factors (host, cariogenic substrate, and microflora) the control of the above mentioned factors consist of increasing the resistance of the host, evading the cariogenic substrate and microflora, and suppressing the modulator that increasing caries activity.