Guardian Reports of Children's Sub-optimal Oral Health Are Associated With Clinically Determined Early Childhood Caries, Unrestored Caries Lesions, and History of Toothaches.

ABSTRACT: Background: Parents'/guardians' perceptions of their children's oral health are useful proxies of their clinically determined caries status and are known to influence dental care-seeking behavior. In this study, we sought to examine (1) the social and behavioral correlates of fair/poor child oral health reported by guardians and (2) quantify the association of these reports with the prevalence of early childhood caries (ECC), unrestored caries lesions and toothaches. Methods: We used guardian-reported child oral health information (dichotomized as fair/poor vs. excellent/very good/good) obtained via a parent questionnaire that was completed for n = 7,965 participants (mean age = 52 months; range = 36-71 months) of a community-based, cross-sectional epidemiologic

SUBMITTER: Imes EP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8739514 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature