Assessing consequences of untreated carious lesions using pufa index among 5-6 years old school children in an urban Indian population

Abstract

Overall mean pufa value was 0.9 ± 1.93 and prevalence was 38.6% with major contribution from P component of index. Untreated caries ratio was 35%, suggesting that more than one-third of the developed carious lesions cause adverse events in a population. This study emphasis the need for treating dental caries at its earliest possible stage to avoid severe consequences. The pufa index can be used as tool to highlight these adverse consequences to dental professionals and health authorities.