Oral health in Romania is a significant challenge, given the low number of annual dental consultations, placing the country in second last place in the European Union, with only 0.3 consultations per capita compared to the European average of 0.9. This low addressability leads to late identification of dental problems and increased treatment costs. The absence of comprehensive studies on the oral health status of the population at national level is a major obstacle in informing programs and policies in this area, with the risk that they may not adequately respond to local and national challenges.

The main objective of the present study was to assess the current oral health status of the Romanian population, targeting individuals aged 0-17 years and over 18 years, urban and rural, who accessed dental services. The research focused on three key aspects: assessment of oral health knowledge and behaviors, analysis of the oral health status of different age groups, and identification of the need for dental services among the population.

The research methodology included a national conventional sample of 1,544 subjects (640 persons aged 0-17 years and 904 persons aged 18 years and over), with data collection taking place between March and May 2024. The study had two main components: the application of a questionnaire in a face-to-face interview in dental cabinets and clinical examinations by dentists. The data obtained provide a margin of error of ±2.5% for the national sample and ±3.9% and ±3.3% for the 0-17 and 18+ samples, respectively, at a 95% confidence level. All samples are representative of the target population, validated on the basis of official statistics provided by the National Statistical Institute. The study was coordinated and conducted by the Romanian Association for Health Promotion.