Mutans Streptococci and dental caries prevalence in a group of Latvian preschool children

Paraffin-stimulated saliva samples were collected from 140 children 3- and 4-yr old attending nine nursery schools in Latvia. The salivary levels of mutans streptococci were rated from zero to 3 after being cultured on a commercially available strip selective for these microorganisms. Of the children, 29.3% were rated at zero (approximately < 10(4) cfu per ml saliva). This group of children demonstrated the lowest mean caries prevalence dmfstot = 1.5 (SD 1.9). The highest dmfstot was found among children in class 2 (38.6%; approximately > 10(5)-10(6) cfu/ml) and class 3 (12.1%; approximately > 10(6) cfu/ml) with a mean caries prevalence of 6.5 (SD 5.8) and 6.4 (SD 6.0), respectively. The study demonstrates the association between high caries prevalence and high salivary levels of mutans streptococci in the young child. It is suggested that early identi-fication of mutans streptococci-colonized children might be of value in selecting at caries risk children for preventive measures.