Medicina Neonatal e Pediátrica

Abstrato

Social and Behavioral Determinants of Early Childhood Caries in the Aseer Region of Saudi Arabia

Abdulrahman Alshehri

Introduction: Early childhood caries is a multi-factorial disease that involves the susceptible tooth and host, fermentable carbohydrates in the diet, cariogenic micro-organisms and time. The aim of this study was to analyze the influence of socio-behavioral variables on the prevalence of dental caries among children between four and five years old. Method: A cross-sectional survey was performed on a sample of 422 children presented to selected five Primary Health Care Centers in the Aseer region of Saudi Arabia. The investigation was conducted using the decayed, missing, and filled teeth index (World Health Organization Methodology), and detection criteria for non-cavitated lesions. A tested, self-administered questionnaire was distributed to parents to obtain information about their sociobehavioral characteristics. Results: It was found that caries have been significantly more prevalent in children from families with employed mothers (p=0.00811). The presence of dental caries was found to be associated with the absence of oral health educators, oral health improving programs and oral health campaigns (p=0.0012). The associations between consuming soft drinks and applying oral hygiene were statistically significant (p=0.00001). Conclusion: A high caries prevalence (77.73%) and a lack of caries treatment are revealed among Saudi preschool children in the Aseer region in this study. The present study has identified risk factors I ECC in pre-school children within a Saudi community. ECC risk can significantly increase for children living with an occupied mother (p=0.00811), consuming more sweets and chocolates (p=0.00001), and an absence of oral health educators and oral health promotion programs (p=0.0012). These factors could be modified through public health strategies, such as effective publicity concerning general dental health, practical health advice and developing effective strategies to promote awareness amongst the Saudi community.