Decay-missing-filled index

dental caries prevalence as well as dental treatment needs among populations and has been used for about 75 years.^[1] This index is based on in-field clinical examination of individuals by using a probe, mirror and cotton rolls, and simply counts the number of decayed, missing (due to caries only) and restored teeth. Another version proposed in 1931 ^[1] counts each affected surface, yielding a decayed, missing, and filled surfaces (DMFS) index. Statistics are available per populations according to age (e.g., "DMF of 12-year old children"). Because the DMF index is done without X-ray imaging, it underestimates real caries prevalence and treatment needs.^[2]