What are ideal requisites of an dental index?

Answer 1

ideally, an index should possess the following properties:

• clarity, simplicity and objectivity:-

the index should be easy to apply so that there is no undue time lost during field examination. the criteria of the index should be clear and unambiguous.

• validity:- it must measure what it is intended to measure, so it should correspond to clinical stages of the disease under study at each point
• reliability:- the index should measure consistently at different times and a variety of conditions. the ability of the same or different to interpret and use the index in the same way
• quantifiability:- it should be responsive to the statistical analysis so that the status can be expressed by a number that corresponds to a relative position on a scale of 0 to the upper limit
• sensitivity:- should be able to detect reasonably small shifts in either direction in the group or individual conditions.
• acceptability:- the use od index should not be painful or demeaning to the subject.