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Oral Health Assessment by Lay Personnel for Older Adults
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Oral health status in preschool asthmatic children in Iran

Sara Ehsani1, Mostafa Moin, Ghasem Meighani

  • 1Dental Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. sara_ds4@yahoo.com.

Iranian Journal of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology
|July 30, 2013
PubMed

Insights

This study found that preschool children with asthma showed no increased risk of tooth decay compared to healthy children. Oral health indices, including dental plaque and gingival inflammation, were similar between groups, suggesting asthma does not negatively impact dental health in this age group.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Respiratory Medicine
  • Pediatric Dentistry
  • Oral Microbiology

Background:

  • Asthma is a common chronic airway inflammatory disorder in preschool children.
  • Contradictory reports exist regarding asthma's impact on oral health.
  • A hypothesis suggests asthma may lead to poorer oral health outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate oral health indices in preschool children with mild to moderate asthma.
  • To compare dental plaque, gingival inflammation, mouth breathing, and dental caries between asthmatic and healthy children.
  • To analyze the presence of Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus species in saliva.

Main Methods:

  • Evaluated oral health in 44 preschool children (3-6 years) with asthma and 46 healthy controls.
  • Assessed dental plaque, gingival inflammation, mouth breathing, and decayed, missing, filled teeth (dmft) using WHO criteria.
  • Quantified Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus species in saliva and analyzed factors influencing counts.

Main Results:

  • No significant difference in dmft index between asthmatic (mean 3.34) and control (mean 3.0) groups.
  • Mother's education and asthma presence significantly affected Streptococcus mutans counts.
  • No factor significantly influenced Lactobacillus counts.

Conclusions:

  • Asthma in preschool children did not significantly increase the likelihood of tooth decay.
  • Oral health indices, including caries, were comparable between asthmatic and healthy children.
  • Further research may explore other oral health aspects potentially affected by asthma.

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