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Preventive and curative dental services utilization among children aged 12 years and younger in Tehran, Iran, based
Elaheh Amirian1,2, Samaneh Razeghi1,2, Alireza Molaei3
1Dentistry Research Institute, Research Center for Caries Prevention, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Insights
This study examined dental service use in children under 12 in Tehran, Iran. Parent perception of oral health needs and socioeconomic status significantly influenced both preventive and curative dental care utilization.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Dental Public Health
- Health Services Research
Background:
- The World Health Organization advocates for universal health care coverage, emphasizing the need to understand factors influencing service utilization.
- Dental health is a critical component of overall child well-being, yet access and utilization of services vary significantly.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the utilization of preventive and curative dental services among children aged 12 years and younger in Tehran, Iran.
- To identify predisposing, enabling, and need factors associated with dental service utilization in this pediatric population using Andersen's behavioral model.
Main Methods:
- A cross-sectional phone-based survey was conducted in Tehran, Iran, in 2023, involving 886 children aged 12 years and younger.
- Generalized structural equation modeling (GSEM) was employed to analyze data on dental service utilization and associated factors.
- Information on curative and preventive/consultation dental service utilization was collected via a standard questionnaire.
Main Results:
- Overall, 22.1% of children utilized curative dental services and 19.9% utilized preventive/consultation services in the past year.
- For younger children (≤6 years), age and parent-perceived oral health need were key predictors for curative care, while age, knowledge, early dental visits, and socioeconomic status predicted preventive care.
- Older children (7-12 years) showed associations between knowledge, early dental visits, socioeconomic status, dental insurance, parent-perceived oral health need, and curative care utilization; preventive care was linked to early dental visits, oral health behavior, socioeconomic status, and perceived need.
Conclusions:
- Predisposing, enabling, and need factors significantly influence dental service utilization in children under 12.
- Findings highlight modifiable determinants, such as socioeconomic status and perceived oral health needs, crucial for policymakers aiming to enhance pediatric dental care access.
- Targeting these factors can improve dental service utilization and contribute to achieving universal health care coverage goals for children.
Abstract:
World Health Organization invites the nations to progress towards universal health care coverage. This study evaluated preventive and curative dental services utilization among children aged 12 years and younger in Tehran, Iran, based on the Andersen behavioral model using a generalized structural equation modeling. A phone-based cross-sectional study was conducted in Tehran, Iran, on 886 children in 2023. Information on curative and preventive/consultation dental service utilization and associated factors was collected by a standard questionnaire. We used a generalized structural equation model (GSEM) to build a model based on Andersen's behavioral model. Of 886 children, 22.1% used curative dental services, and 19.9% used preventive/consultation services in the past year. Among children aged 6 years and younger, age (OR = 1.87, p-value <0.001) and parent-perceived oral health need (OR = 54.77, p-value <0.001) predicted curative services utilization and age (OR = 1.45, p-value <0.001), knowledge (OR = 1.36, p-value <0.001), dental visit before the age of one (OR = 6.05, p-value = 0.04), and socioeconomic status (OR = 1.65, p-value = 0.03) predicted preventive/consultation services utilization. Regarding children aged 7 to 12, knowledge (OR = 1.28, p-value = 0.03), dental visit before the age of one (OR = 11.12, p-value = 0.02), socioeconomic status (OR = 2.53, p-value = 0.01), dental insurance (OR = 4.17, p-value <0.001), and parent-perceived oral health need (OR = 19.48, p-value <0.001) associated with curative dental services utilization, and dental visit before the age of one (OR = 10.05, p-value = 0.02), oral health behavior (OR = 1.25, p-value = 0.04), socioeconomic status (OR = 3.74, p-value <0.001), and parent-perceived oral health need (OR = 4.62, p-value <0.001) related to preventive/consultation services utilization. The findings of this study underscore the significant influence of predisposing, enabling, and need factors on dental services utilization among children aged 12 years and younger. These results provide a valuable perspective for policymakers, highlighting the modifiable determinants that could be targeted to improve dental services utilization in this age group.
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