{{Short description|Measurement of dental health}}
The '''Decaydecay-Missingmissing-Filledfilled''' ('''DMF''') index or '''decayed, missing, and filled teeth''' (DMF'''DMFT''') index is one of the most common methods in [[oral]] [[epidemiology]] for assessing [[dental caries]] [[prevalence]] as well as [[dental]] treatment needs among populations and has been used for about 75 years.<ref name="ncbi.nlm.nih.gov">{{cite journal | pmc = 1388190 | pmid=16262607 | doi=10.1111/j.1600-0528.2005.00259.x | volume=33 | title=For debate: problems with the DMF index pertinent to dental caries data analysis | year=2005 | journal=Community Dent Oral Epidemiol | pages=400–9 | author=Broadbent JM, Thomson WM| issue=6 }}</ref> 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 [[tooth|teeth]]. Another version proposed in 1931 <ref name="ncbi.nlm.nih.gov"/> 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.<ref name="HC">{{cite journal |author=Zadik Yehuda, Bechor Ron |title=Hidden Occlusal Caries - Challenge for the Dentist |journal=New York State Dental Journal |volume=74 |issue=4 |pages=46–50 |yeardate=June–July 2008 |month=June/July |url=http://www.nysdental.org/img/current-pdf/JrnlJuneJuly2008.pdf |format=PDF|accessdate=2008-08-08 |pmid=18788181 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110722002339/http://www.nysdental.org/img/current-pdf/JrnlJuneJuly2008.pdf |archive-date=2011-07-22 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
