To survey the dental caries status and the awareness and behavior of oral health of senior high school students in Chuxiong Autonomous Prefecture in Yunnan province, enrich the data of oral epidemiology in Yunnan province, and to guide the prevention and treatment of oral diseases in remote mountainous districts.

According to the criterion issued by World Health Organization (WHO) (4th ed, 1997) and the basic methods of the Fourth National Oral Health Epidemiological Survey, a total of 660 students of grade 2 in senior high school in Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture in Yunnan province were investigated by cluster sampling in this study. The collected data were analyzed by using statistical analysis software SPSS 21.0.

Among 660 subjects, 319 were Han students and 341 were Yi students. The caries prevalence rate and mean decayed-missing-filled tooth (DMFT) in Yi and Han were 76.2%, 3.14 and 71.5%, 2.81, respectively. No significant difference was found in the two groups of native (P>0.05) .

Poor status and awareness of oral health in senior high school students of Yi and Han in Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture in Yunnan province suggest that resources for oral health should be more invested in remote mountainous areas.