The global prevalence of early childhood caries: A systematic review with meta‐analysis using the WHO diagnostic criteria

Aim To estimate the global prevalence of early childhood caries using the WHO criteria. Design Systematic review of studies published from 1960 to 2019. Data sources: PubMed, Google Scholar, SciELO, and LILACS. Eligibility criteria were articles using: dmft‐WHO diagnostic criteria with calibrated examiners, probability sampling, and sample sizes. Study selection: Two reviewers searched, screened, and extracted information from the selected articles. All pooled analyses were based on random‐effects models. The protocol is available on PROSPERO 2014 registration code CRD42014009578. Results From 472 reports, 214 used WHO criteria and 125 fit the inclusion criteria. Sixty‐four reports of 67 countries (published 1992‐2019) had adequate data to be summarised in the meta‐analysis. They covered 29 countries/59018 children. Global random‐effects pooled prevalence was (percentage[95% CI]) 48[43, 53]. The prevalence by continent was Africa: 30[19, 45]; Americas: 48 [42, 54]; Asia: 52[43, 61]; Europe: 43[24, 66]; and Oceania: 82[73, 89]. Differences across countries explain 21.2% of the observed variance. Conclusions Early childhood caries is a global health problem, affecting almost half of preschool children. Results are reported from 29 of 195 countries. ECC prevalence varied widely, and there was more variance attributable to between‐country differences rather than continent or change over time.