Relationship between saliva flowrate and dental caries of students with mental retardation

Mentally disabled are children, who experience obstacles or delay in mental development (intellectual function under their peers) accompanied by inability/lack of ability to learn and to adapt. The frequent problems of dental and oral health are dental caries, periodontal problems, malocclusion, and breath with mouth or mouth chronic. The disease of caries is related to many factors (multiple factors) that influence each other. There are four main factors, namely the host, agent, substrate factors, and time. They are characterized by tissue damage, which usually starts from the surface of the tooth (pit, fissure, and interproximal area), which they extend to the pulp. Caries can occur on one or more surfaces of the tooth and can extend to the deeper parts of the tooth, for example, that caries can occur in enamel and extend to dentine and pulp. The study aims to find out the relationship between the flowrate saliva and dental caries of Mentally Disabled Students extra ordinary school B-C Optimal Kenjeran Surabaya. This type of study is analytic observation. The objective of the study is 24 children with mental disabilities. Methods of collect variables of flowrate saliva and dental caries by observation. Analysis data of this study use the spearman rho test. The results of the study show a relationship between flowrate saliva and dental caries of mentally disabled students extra ordinary school B-C Optimal Kenjeran, Surabaya.