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Guardian Factors Affecting High Prevalence of Dental Caries in Preschool Children
Insights
Caregiver oral health knowledge and status significantly impact children's early dental caries risk. Educating guardians is key to preventing cavities in young children.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Dentistry
- Public Health
- Dental Hygiene
Background:
- Early childhood caries (ECC) is a significant public health concern.
- Caregiver factors are increasingly recognized as crucial in ECC prevention strategies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the relationship between caregiver-related factors (knowledge, attitude, behavior, health status) and ECC.
- To identify effective intervention methods for reducing ECC prevalence in preschool children.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional study in Zhejiang, China, involving 1344 guardians and their children (3-5 years old).
- Guardians completed questionnaires on oral health knowledge, attitude, and status; children received dental examinations.
- Statistical analysis included Chi-squared tests, Fisher's exact tests, and multinomial logistic regression.
Main Results:
- Positive caregiver oral health knowledge and attention were associated with lower ECC risk (p=0.027).
- Caregiver dental caries (p=0.0002), gingival bleeding (p=0.049), and chewing discomfort (p=0.049) showed significant correlations with ECC levels.
Conclusions:
- Caregiver's oral health knowledge, attitude, and status are significantly linked to their child's ECC level.
- Targeted dental health education for caregivers, rather than children, is recommended for ECC prevention.
Purpose:
This study analysed the relationship between caregiver-related factors (dental knowledge, attitude, behaviour, and health status) and early childhood caries. ?It aimed to explore better intervention methods for reducing caries prevalence in preschool children.
Materials And Methods:
This cross-sectional investigation was carried out in Zhejiang, China. A total of 1344 guardians (parents and grandparents) paired with their children aged 3-5 years old were enrolled. The guardians completed structured questionnaires, which included their attitude, knowledge level and oral health status. The children received dental examinations. All of the data ?were analysed with R software. Chi-squared and Fisher's exact tests were used to analyse different variables. Multinomial logistic regression with stepwise procedures and curve fitting was used to explore the relationship between guardians' risk factors and the level of early childhood caries.
Results:
Guardians have a great influence on the incidence of early childhood dental caries. ?When guardians pay attention to oral health and have a good command of relevant knowledge, then the risk of early dental caries in children is low (p = 0.027). The guardians' dental problems?, e.g. dental caries (p = 0.0002), gingival bleeding problems (p = 0.049) and chewing discomfort experience (p = 0.049), demonstrated ?statistically significant correlations with early childhood caries levels?.
Conclusion:
Guardians' attitudes, knowledge, and oral health status ?had a statistically significant relationship with the level of early childhood caries? in their children/grandchildren. Instead of instructing schoolchildren about oral health, multiple-level dental knowledge instruction of guardians is needed to prevent early childhood caries.
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