Parents’ Education Level and Children’s BMI Explain Caries Distribution Among Kindergarten Students: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Background: Dental caries is a common but preventable, multifactorial disease in children. Among several others, it is influenced by child-and parent-related factors. Aims: To describe knowledge, attitude and practices about oral health among parents of kindergarten children and assess factors influencing caries distribution among the children. Methods: Parents of 290 kindergarten children in AlMadinah, Saudi Arabia, answered questions concerning their oral health knowledge, attitudes and practices. The children underwent an oral clinical examination. Data were collected between February and April 2018. Comparison between groups was done using the Kruskal–Wallis test. Results: All parents agreed on the importance of fluoride to strengthen teeth, while 91.7% thought that sweets have a negative impact on teeth. Almost all children ate sweets and candies (99%), while most of them used toothbrushes and fluoride to clean their teeth (98%). Only 66% of parents took their children to the dentist. The 2-step cluster analysis revealed that clusters of children with high body mass index (BMI) and those whose parents had only primary education had the highest caries prevalence compared to clusters of children with lower BMI and parents with higher education (P < 0.05). Conclusions: Within the study limits, parents demonstrated good oral health knowledge, attitudes and practices. Kindergarten children had high caries, especially those with high BMI and whose parents had low educational levels.