DMFT Full Form: Decayed, Missing, Filled Teeth Index

Each letter is a count. D is teeth with untreated decay, M is teeth lost because of decay, and F is teeth that have a filling from earlier decay. Add the three together and you get the DMFT score for that person. The maximum is 28 when wisdom teeth are excluded, or 32 with them.

A score of zero means no decay experience. A person with two cavities, one tooth extracted for decay and three fillings would score six. The index counts history as well as current disease, which is why it never goes down after treatment: a filled tooth still counts as F.

Capital letters refer to permanent teeth. Lowercase dmft (or deft) is used for milk teeth in children. The method is the same. Surveys of school children often report both, to show how much decay has occurred in each set of teeth.

Decay in children is covered in cavities in milk teeth.

Public health teams use DMFT to compare groups, track changes over time and plan prevention such as fluoride or sealants. It is a population tool. It does not tell an individual patient what treatment is needed.

It also does not capture early decay, white spot lesions or the severity of each cavity. To understand what a cavity is and how it is treated, read cavity in teeth, and for prevention see how to stop tooth decay. Treatment options are on the tooth fillings page, and types of dental fillings compares materials.