A Community-Based Program for Dental Caries Prevention in Children was Found to Overcome Multiple Barriers to Care and Improve Children's Oral Health

Abstract Background Promotion of oral health in children is recognized as one of the components of health-promoting schools (HPSs). However, few studies have addressed supportive school environments for children’s oral health. This study aimed to evaluate the status of dental caries in school children at HPSs, with the objective of examining the impact of a supportive school environment for oral health, considering the lifestyles of individual children and the socioeconomic characteristics of their communities. Methods Data of 2043 5th-grade students in 21 elementary schools in Ichikawa city between 2008 and 2013 were analyzed. Children’s oral health status was evaluated using the decayed, missing, and filled permanent teeth (DMFT) index. A self-reported lifestyle questionnaire, a survey of the school environment promoting tooth-brushing, and community socioeconomic characteristics derived from the National Census data were included in the analyses. Bivariate analyses were conducted to evaluate the children’s DMFT status, and zero-inflated negative binominal (ZINB) regression was used to assess the relationships between DMFT and other variables. Results Prevalence of dental caries in the permanent teeth of 5th-grade children (aged 10–11 years) was 33.3%, with a mean DMFT score (± SD) of 0.83 ± 1.50. According to multilevel ZINB regression analysis, children from schools with after-lunch tooth-brushing time showed a higher odds ratio (OR) for excess zero DMFT (OR = 1.47, 95% CI = 1.00–2.15, P = 0.049) as compared to those from schools without it. Neither bivariate analysis nor ZINB model analysis revealed any significant influence of children’s gender or use of a toothpaste with fluoride. Conclusions The school-based environment supportive of oral health was significantly associated with a zero DMFT status in children. School-based efforts considering the socioeconomic characteristics of the area warrant attention even with declining prevalence of dental caries.

Download Full-text

Neighbourhood characteristics and children’s oral health: a multilevel population-based cohort study

European Journal of Public Health ◽

10.1093/eurpub/ckab013 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Agatha W van Meijeren-van Lunteren ◽

Joost Oude Groeniger ◽

Eppo B Wolvius ◽

Lea Kragt

Keyword(s):

Cohort Study ◽

Oral Health ◽

Dental Caries ◽

Open Data ◽

Multilevel Modelling ◽

Population Based ◽

Individual Characteristics ◽

Dental Services ◽

Neighbourhood Characteristics ◽

Children’S Oral Health

Abstract Background To understand determinants of oral health inequalities, multilevel modelling is a useful manner to study contextual factors in relation to individual oral health. Several studies outside Europe have been performed so far, however, contextual variables used are diverse and results conflicting. Therefore, this study investigated whether neighbourhood level differences in oral health exist, and whether any of the neighbourhood characteristics used were associated with oral health. Methods This study is embedded in The Generation R Study, a prospective cohort study conducted in The Netherlands. In total, 5 960 6-year-old children, representing 158 neighbourhoods in the area of Rotterdam, were included. Data on individual and neighbourhood characteristics were derived from questionnaires, and via open data resources. Caries was assessed via intraoral photographs, and defined as decayed, missing and filled teeth (dmft). Results Differences between neighbourhoods explained 13.3% of the risk of getting severe caries, and 2% of the chance of visiting the dentist yearly. After adjustments for neighbourhood and individual characteristics, neighbourhood deprivation was significantly associated with severe dental caries (OR: 1.48, 95% CI: 1.02–2.15), and suggestive of a low odds of visiting the dentist yearly (OR: 0.81, 95% CI: 0.56–1.18). Conclusions Childhood caries and use of dental services differs between neighbourhoods and living in a deprived neighbourhood is associated with increased dental caries and decreased yearly use of dental services. This highlights the importance of neighbourhoods for understanding differences in children’s oral health, and for targeted policies and interventions to improve the oral health of children living in deprived neighbourhoods.

Download Full-text

Caries Prevention in Adults- Knowledge, Attitude and Practices among Indian Dental Professionals

Journal of Pharmaceutical Research International ◽

10.9734/jpri/2021/v33i38b32103 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 98-105

Author(s):

Abdulelah Sameer Sindi ◽

Sumaya Yousuf Jeri ◽

Sarika Sharma ◽

Renuka G. Nagrale ◽

Amit Kumar ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Oral Health ◽

Dental Caries ◽

Caries Prevention ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Significance Level ◽

Choice Pattern ◽

Dental Practitioners ◽

Student’S T ◽

Post Hoc ◽

The Relationship

Background: Dentists must have accurate knowledge and affirmative attitudes about dental care in order to prevent dental caries. Therefore, the present was conducted with aim to find out knowledge, attitude and actual practices (KAP) for caries prevention in adults on Indian dentist Material and Methods: This cross-sectional questionnaire study was conducted on private dental practitioners of Ghaziabad city. Knowledge on preventive dentistry was assessed by 16 questions with true/false or multiple choice pattern. A total of 8 questions each were utilized for attitude and practices, respectively on a 5-point likert scale. Student’s t-test and One way ANOVA followed by post hoc test was applied to determine the relationship between mean scores of KAP and demographic variables. The significance level was set at below 0.05. Results: Slightly better scores for KAP was found in participants belonging to <30 years of age. The total mean KAP scores of dentists were 8.9 ± 2.2, 26.1 ± 1.7, 21.1 ± 1.9, respectively. Approximately 37% dentist agreed or strongly agreed that fluoride application can prevent dental caries in adults. And 31.5% dentist never advised/performed fluoride application in high caries patients. Conclusion: Strategies to update dentists’ knowledge and practices of primary preventive measures for dental caries may be beneficial in promoting oral health. Findings help in emphasizing the inception and initiation of preventive oral health policies and services in the Indian scenario.

Download Full-text