Dental health findings in a Native American settlement.

In 1951, A. Dahlberg took casts of 82 children aged 8-17 who lived in the Sac & Fox Settlement near Tama, Iowa. This study compares 1980, 1982, and 1990 dental survey results among the Sac & Fox and a general resident population. In 1990, the Indian Health Service supported a survey of 44 survivors from the 1951 study. All were contacted and 23 were examined. The findings from this study were compared with findings from similar aged Sac & Fox residents surveyed in 1982, and with residents of Iowa of a similar age surveyed in 1980. The DMFS score of the 1990 Sac & Fox samples was larger (92.4) than that for the Iowa Survey (75.3). The periodontal findings were similar in the three samples, with one exception, the category 6+mm pockets were seen more frequently in the 1990 Sac & Fox sample (13.0%) than in the 1982 Sac & Fox (8.7%) and 1980 Iowa Survey (2.9%) samples. Mucosal lesions were observed much more frequently in the Sac & Fox 1990 (69.6%) and 1982 (65.2%) samples, compared to the 1980 sample (8.6%). The frequency of totally edentulous persons was also much greater in the Sac & Fox samples, as compared to the Iowa Sample. It appears that the 1982 recommendations for making preventive procedures available to Sac & Fox adults is still appropriate in 1990.