Disability-adjusted life year for dental caries per 100,000 inhabitants in 2004. Worldwide, approximately 3.6 billion people have dental caries in their permanent teeth. In baby teeth it affects about 620 million people or 9% of the population. The disease is most common in Latin American countries, countries in the Middle East, and South Asia, and least prevalent in China. In the United States, dental caries is the most common chronic childhood disease, being at least five times more common than asthma. It is the primary pathological cause of tooth loss in children. Between 29% and 59% of adults over the age of 50 experience caries. Treating dental cavities costs 5–10% of health-care budgets in industrialized countries, and can easily exceed budgets in lower-income countries. The number of cases has decreased in some developed countries, and this decline is usually attributed to increasingly better oral hygiene practices and preventive measures such as fluoride treatment. Nonetheless, countries that have experienced an overall decrease in cases of<unk>  continue to have a disparity in the distribution of the disease. Among children in the United States and Europe, twenty percent of the population endures sixty to eighty percent of cases of dental caries. A similarly skewed distribution of the disease is found throughout the world with some children having none or very few caries and others having a high number. Australia, Nepal, and Sweden (where children receive dental care paid for by the government) have a low incidence of cases of dental caries among children, whereas cases are more numerous in Costa Rica and Slovakia. The classic DMF<unk> /missing/filled) index is one of the most common methods for assessing caries prevalence as well as dental treatment needs among populations. This index is based on in-field clinical examination of individuals by using a probe, mirror and cotton rolls. Because the DMF index is done without X-ray imaging, it underestimates real caries prevalence and treatment needs. Bacteria typically associated with dental caries have been isolated from vaginal samples from females who have bacterial vaginosis.
Tooth decay
Tooth loss
Hair loss
Tooth discoloration
Onycholysis
Blue nails
Green nails
Oral pigmentation