Dental Caries Prevalence in Nigeria: Meta-Analysis of 52 Studies (2001-2023)

A 2023 meta-analysis of 52 studies published between January 2001 and December 2023 determined the prevalence of dental caries in Nigeria. The dataset, created by Folahanmi Tomiwa Akinsolu, provides pooled prevalence estimates for primary, mixed, and permanent dentition across urban, rural, and semi-urban settings. The overall pooled prevalence was 17%, with substantial heterogeneity observed across studies.

Use Cases

• Estimate national and regional dental caries burden based on pooled prevalence data.
• Compare oral health outcomes across urban, rural, and semi-urban settings as described in the results.
• Analyze trends in dental caries across different dentition types (primary, mixed, permanent).
• Inform public health intervention planning using the geographic and demographic breakdowns.

Strengths

• Data is derived from a systematic review of 52 studies, providing a synthesized evidence base.
• Includes specific pooled prevalence percentages with 95% confidence intervals for different dentition types and settings.
• Follows PRISMA guidelines and was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42022362019), indicating a structured methodology.

Limitations

• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Substantial heterogeneity (I² values of 96-98%) was observed across the included studies, indicating diverse epidemiological contexts.

Provenance

Source

figshare

Collection Method

Systematic review and meta-analysis of studies from PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, CINAHL, Embase, and Google Scholar.

Time Range

2001-2023

Freshness

Last updated 2026-06-01 17:40:15; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Nigeria (studies were conducted across the country, with most from Southwestern Nigeria)