Social assessment of children dental health and its determining factors

Abstract

Relevance. The high prevalence of tooth decay requires investigation of its risk factors. The aim was to study tooth decay risk factors among six-year-old children according to the level of dental health (based on parents’ assessment).Materials and methods. The research evaluated the dental health of six-year-olds and factors defining their oral health; The study surveyed 515 parents of six-year-old children from 7 kindergartens in Arkhangelsk. Pearson chi-square test assessed the differences in the frequency of tooth decay factors among six-year-old children according to the level of dental health. The accepted significance level was 0.05.Results. The Arkhangelsk parents evaluated the dental health of their six-year-olds as relatively favourable: good (41.2%) and satisfactory (46.6%). Only 9.5% of children had poor health. Children generally had good oral hygiene skills: 86.8% liked brushing their teeth; 60.2% squeezed the optimal amount of toothpaste on the toothbrush; 56.7% brushed their teeth twice a day. The dental literacy of parents was satisfactory: 67.0% purchased toothpaste for children; 90.8% considered necessary to treat primary teeth; 69.2% replaced toothbrush every three months; 59.7% visited a pediatric dentist twice a year. The children with poor dental health had insufficient oral hygiene skills: 46.9% did not like teeth cleaning; 51.1% brushed their teeth once a day. Their diet was not healthy: 100.0% did not eat hard food; 65.3% frequently consumed sweets. The parents  of children with poor dental health had low medical literacy and poor oral hygiene: 46.9% did not know that treatment of primary teeth was necessary; 42.9% considered the treatment of primary teeth as unnecessary; 32.6% purchased whatever toothpaste. The general negative trend is to use toothpaste without fluoride (68.1%).Conclusions. The results of the study demonstrated a significantly higher frequency of cariogenic factors in children with poor dental health.