[The salivary content of Streptococcus mutans in Basel children and adolescents].

The search for a feasible method to estimate the caries risk in humans is going on since several years. Such risk assessments should especially be performed in persons clinically suspected to be at risk. The quantitative determination of Mutans Streptococci (SM) in whole saliva has been proposed to serve as a measure of the caries risk. SM tests have been performed in a group of 5743 5 to 16 year old children and adolescents living in the city of Basle in 1991. Levels of SM in whole saliva were correlated with caries prevalence both in the deciduous and permanent teeth. SM counts have become a valuable diagnostic tool for the early identification of children at risk for caries development. SM tests have equally become a helpful pedagogic instrument used to motivate patients for individual prophylactic activities.