Abstract

Background: Dental caries is one of the most common and difficult to control chronic infections in children, characterized by its early onset and rapid progression. The objective of the study was to investigate the current status of primary caries and determine the factors related to dental caries in children aged 3-5 years in Hue city in 2020. Subjects and methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study of 464 children and their direct caregivers in 4 kindergartens of Hue city from June 2020 to October 2020. Clinical examination of the children’s oral health and interview with parent/caregiver using to a set of questions to identify related factors. Results: Overall caries prevalence was 77.2%. The index of dmft was 8.82, in which the average index of tooth decay, missing, filling teeth is 8.25, 0.09, 0.48 respectively. The factors related to primary caries were significant through multivariate analysis: Age group, Number of times brushing teeth, Parents help brush teeth and Habit of eating sweets. Conclusion: The prevalence of dental caries in preschool children in Hue city is still very high. It is necessary to have appropriate dental caries prevention interventions, contributing to reducing the rate of caries as in recent decision of the Vietnamese Ministry of Health on universal dental care until 2030.