Influence of Teeth Brushing Behavior, Saliva Flow Rate, Salivary Hydration, Saliva Viscosity and Saliva PH on Risk of Caries Occurrence in Adolescents in Gianyar, Bali, Indonesia

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of brushing behavior, salivary flow rate, salivary hydration, salivary viscosity and saliva pH on the risk of caries occurrence in adolescents at SMAN 1Ubud Gianyar.

This research is cross sectional study, with 235 samples selected by purposive random sampling. All samples were measured DMF-T, salivary flow rate and salivary hydration, followed by saliva collection 2 hours after eating last meal during the day for analysis of viscosity and salivary pH, followed by an assessment of toothbrushing skill with the guidance of toothbrushing rubric. The collected data were analyzed by chi-square statistic test.

There was a significant correlation between toothbrushing behavior with caries incidence rate with p = 0.00 (P≤0.05), whereas flow rate, hydration, viscosity and salivary pH did not significantly affect caries incidence rate with p≥0.05.

Toothbrushing behavior significantly affects caries incidence rate when compared with physical and chemical properties of saliva.