A new survey from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare reports that between 40% and 57% of 12–15 year old teenagers have had some history of decay in their permanent teeth and that nearly half of all 6 year olds have had a history of decay in their baby teeth.

The Dental Health of Australia's Teenagers and Pre-teen Children: The Child Dental Health Survey, published in January this year, provides national information on the dental health of children attending school dental services in Australia. The report presents analyses for the combined years 2003–04, and covers data on more than a quarter of a million children from all states and territories except for New South Wales.

Its findings shows that decay experience is relatively common in both teenage and pre-teen Australian children.

The full report is available online from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. It is also available in the Dentistry Library at RK52.4.A8 D46 no.52 .

If you are looking for statistical data on the dental health of Australians, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare is a good source. It provides free access to a range of publications containing statistical data, and it can be found on the UQ Library Catalogue by searching Dental statistics and research series online.