Children's dental health in Australia is better than many other
countries, according to a report released today by the Australian
Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW), but children from
disadvantaged socioeconomic areas have poorer dental health than
other Australian children.
The report, Socioeconomic differences in children's dental
health: The Child Dental Health Survey, Australia 2001, shows
that of the 41 countries with comparable national data, Australia
had the fifth lowest average number of decayed, missing and filled
permanent teeth among 12-year-olds.
In 2001, the average 12-year-old in Australia had just one
decayed, missing or filled permanent tooth, but over 40% of them
had evidence of dental disease. The average 6-year-old child in
Australia had about two (1.9) decayed, missing or filled baby
teeth, and close to half of those children (47.3%) had evidence of
dental disease.
'The report showed that, across all ages, children living in the
socioeconomically better-off areas had fewer decayed, missing and
filled teeth than those living in the worse-off areas,' said Mr
Jason Armfield of the AIHW's Dental Statistics and Research Unit
based in the Australian Research Centre for Population Oral Health
at The University of Adelaide.
Children from better-off areas also derived more benefit from
fissure sealants-a material to protect from decay-than children
from worse-off areas. The average number of decayed missing and
filled teeth was 18% lower for children without sealants from the
best-off areas compared to children from the worse-off areas.
The more socioeconomically advantaged the metropolitan children
were, the fewer decayed, missing and filled teeth they had.
However, for rural and remote children there was no such gradient
and only those in the best-off areas had an advantage in their
dental health.
17 August 2006
Further information: Mr Jason Armfield, AIHW
ARCPOH, tel. 08 8303 4050.
For media copies of the report: Publications
Officer, AIHW, tel. 61 2 6244 1032.
Availability: Check the AIHW Publications
Catalogue for availability of Socioeconomic differences in
children's dental health: The Child Dental Health Survey, Australia
2001