General dental health refers the to a state of child's teeth and gums in the past 12 months. General dental health can be seen to depend not only on dental care by a dentist, but also on other factors including individual behaviour and genetic makeup.
Children aged 9 to 12 years reported the highest prevalence of 'very bad', 'bad', or 'fair' general dental health. In this age group, one in four (25.5%) males reported these outcomes, the highest proportion of any group.
One in twenty (4.9%) reported needing a dental examination or treatment on at least one occasion during the previous 12 months but did not receive it. The reasons as to why the examination or treatment did not take place included affordability, waiting list times, distance to travel, or unable to take the time due to other commitments. Females aged 9 to 12 years were the group most likely to report this at 6.7%.
Learn about our data and confidentiality safeguards, and the steps we take to produce statistics that can be trusted by all.