Dental Caries Experience and the Impact of School-Based Dental Clinics: A Comparative Study of Children in the Philippines and South Korea

Objectives: This study aimed to examine the hypothesis that children in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) have poorer oral health compared to those in high-income countries, and to evaluate the effectiveness of school-based dental clinics in reducing dental caries and improving oral health outcomes. The findings may offer policy insights applicable to other LMICs. Methods A total of 980 children aged 12 to 13 from a school in Manila, Philippines, and 671 children of the same age group in South Korea were included. Oral health data from the Philippines were collected on-site by four Korean dentists and four dental hygienists as part of an international medical outreach initiative. Korean data were sourced from the 2021–2022 National Children’s Oral Health Survey conducted by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Results The mean DMFT index for Korean children was 1.95 and for Filipino children was 1.69. However, the mean number of decayed permanent teeth was significantly higher among Filipino children (1.47) compared to Korean children (0.13), indicating a higher burden of untreated dental caries in the Philippines. Conclusions While the overall caries experience (DMFT) was slightly higher in Korean children, Filipino children had a substantially higher rate of untreated caries. School-based dental clinics demonstrated effectiveness in reducing this gap and may serve as a viable strategy to improve oral health in LMICs.