[영문]Objectives. Water fluoridation is one of the most effective public healthprograms of the past century. However, efforts to extend water fluoridationinto currently non-fluoridated areas are often thwarted. Despite considerableevidence regarding the effectiveness of water fluoridation at an individual level,published national community-based studies are rare. This study comparedchildren’s decay experience and prevalence between areas with and withoutwater fluoridation in Australia.Methods. Oral health data were obtained from clinical examinations of128,990 5- to 15-year-old children attending for a regular visit with theirrespective Australian state or territory School Dental Service in 2002. Waterfluoridation status, residence remoteness, and socioeconomic status (SES) wereobtained for each child’s recorded residential postcode area.Results. Children from every age group had greater caries prevalence andmore caries experience in areas with negligible fluoride concentrations in thewater (？0.3 parts per million [ppm]) than in optimally fluoridated areas (？0.7ppm). Controlling for child age, residential location, and SES, deciduous andpermanent caries experience was 28.7% and 31.6% higher, respectively, inlow-fluoride areas compared with optimally fluoridated areas. The odds ratiosfor higher caries prevalence in areas with negligible fluoride compared withoptimal fluoride were 1.34 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.29, 1.39) and 1.24(95% CI 1.21, 1.28) in the deciduous and permanent dentitions, respectively.Conclusions. This study demonstrates the continued community effectivenessof water fluoridation and provides support for the extension of this importantoral health intervention to populations currently without access to fluoridatedwater.