ABSTRACT
The objective of the present study was to compare longitudinally the simplified dental examination involving the use of a wooden spatula and a tooth pick with the conventional dental mirror and probe examination for the detection of cavitated carious lesions, dental plaque [with and without gingival bleeding] and calculus. This was a quasi-experimental study that involved 632 children having a mean age of 10 4 years at the start of the study and studying in eight different secondary schools of Karachi, Pakistan The children were subjected to two types of dental examination on three occasions with intervals of six and twelve months in between to detect cavitated carious lesions, dental plaque [with and without gingival bleeding] and calculus. All examinations were conducted by a single examiner who was trained and calibrated for both types of examination. One type of examination involved the use of a wooden spatula and a toothpick [TS examination] while the other type was carried out using the plain mouth mirror and CPI [Community Periodontal Index] probe [MP Examination]. All examinations were performed under identical conditions using natural light Teeth' and 'sextants of oral cavity' were considered as the units of measurement for data analysis. The WHO recommended criteria for decayed, missing and filled teeth were followed for caries detection. A dichotomous scale was used for plaque [with and without gingival bleeding] and calculus with 'present' or 'absent categories. The sensitivity of TS examination for detecting cavitated carious lesions in three examinations ranged from 88.35% to 90.86%; and for Plaque [with and without bleeding] and calculus from 92-99%, the lowest value being for 'calculus' and the highest for 'plaq 1 ue with bleeding' The specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value were between 98-99% for both caries and the three components of oral hygiene status, The TS examination can provide a desirable substitute to conventional MP examination in order to undertake regular dental check-ups of school children including detection of cavitated various lesions and assessment of oral hygiene status