Plaque Chart

Plaque Charts are representatives of the mouth that show sites where Plaque was found. The chart shown here is an example of what you get if 'graph' is selected as the type of chart. The patient's chart number, name, examiner, and examination date are printed on the top. This chart is intended for the patient as an aid to improve home care. The view is for the patient and is read left side to right, looking out of the mouth. The maxillary arch is on top and the mandibular arch is on the bottom. Small boxes with an X represent missing teeth. Any part of the tooth shaded in red is an area where plaque was present.

If 'images' is selected as the type of chart, images of teeth will be drawn with small red dots indicating the presence of plaque. The chart is interpreted the same as the 'graph' chart shown here.

The bottom of the page gives Plaque Index Scores and a Probing Summary. The Plaque Index Scores give percentages of plaque found on all, molar, inter-proximal, buccal, and lingual surfaces of the teeth. The Probing Summary gives an overall description of the entire data set. The number of teeth present, the number of bleeding sites, and the number of suppuration sites are displayed. The total number of sites, moderate sites, and severe sites where pocket depth has progressed deeper by at least one millimeter will be listed. The number of furcations and the number of teeth where some mobility was found will also be listed.

The new plaque chart makes it easy for the dentist and their patients to view in a graphical manner the areas most affected by plaque. Note that the old plaque chart can still be printed, but we expect this new chart to be more intuitive and useful.