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Early childhood caries: prevalence and risk factors in Seoul, Korea
Bo-Hyoung Jin1, Deuk-Sang Ma, Hyock-Soo Moon
1Department of Dental Hygiene, Shingu College, Sungnam Kyunggi, South Korea.
Insights
Early childhood caries (ECC) is highly prevalent in Seoul, affecting over half of children aged 6-59 months. Key risk factors include sweetened bottle-feeding and frequent between-meal snacks, highlighting the need for targeted interventions.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Dentistry
- Public Health
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Early childhood caries (ECC) poses a significant global health challenge.
- Understanding ECC prevalence and risk factors in specific populations is crucial for effective prevention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the prevalence of ECC, including noncavitated lesions, in children aged 6-59 months in Seoul, Korea.
- To investigate the association between ECC and socioeconomic factors, feeding practices, and oral health behaviors.
Main Methods:
- A cross-sectional study involving dental examinations of 470 children aged 6-59 months from child care facilities in Seoul.
- Phone interviews with parents of 383 children to gather data on feeding practices and oral health behaviors.
- Bivariate and logistic regression analyses were used to identify risk factors associated with ECC.
Main Results:
- The prevalence of ECC was 56.5%, and severe ECC was 47.0% among the study population.
- Children consuming sweetened solutions in nursing bottles showed a higher prevalence of severe ECC (P=.035).
- Lower frequency of between-meal snacks was associated with lower ECC prevalence (P=.046), and age and snack frequency were significant predictors in logistic regression (P<.05).
Conclusions:
- ECC prevalence is high in young children in Seoul, Korea.
- Sweetened bottle-feeding and frequent between-meal snacks are significant risk factors for ECC.
- Development of early educational intervention programs targeting identified risk factors is recommended for pregnant women and mothers.
Objective:
The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of early childhood caries (ECC), including noncavitated lesions (d1), in children 6-59 months of age in relation to socioeconomic factors, feeding practices, and oral health behaviors in Seoul, Korea.
Methods:
The children attended child care facilities and were selected from 32 primary sampling units. Two dentists examined 470 children. Parents of 383 of the subjects were interviewed by phone regarding caries risk factors.
Results:
For children 6-59 months of age, the prevalence of ECC and severe ECC were 56.5 percent and 47.0 percent respectively. In bivariate analysis, the children whose nursing bottle contained sweetened solution had higher severe ECC prevalence (P=.035), and children whose parents reported a lower frequency of between-meal snacks showed lower ECC prevalence (P=.046). By logistic regression analysis, age and frequency of between-meal snacks were associated with the prevalence of ECC (P<.05).
Conclusion:
This study demonstrates that the prevalence of ECC was high among children in Seoul. Early educational intervention programs for pregnant women and mothers of young children should be developed based on the risk factors identified in this study.
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