Postgraduate Program in Dentistry, State University of Paraiba (UEPB), 1325/410 Capitão João Alves de Lira, 58428-800 Campina Grande, PB, Brazil.
Health Qual Life Outcomes. 2014 Apr 18;12:55. doi: 10.1186/1477-7525-12-55.
Dental caries, traumatic dental injury (TDI) and malocclusion are common oral health conditions among preschool children and can have both physical and psychosocial consequences. Thus, it is important to measure the impact these on the oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) of children. The aim of the present study was to assess the impact of oral health conditions on the OHRQoL of preschool children and their families.
A preschool-based, cross-sectional study was carried out with 843 preschool children in the city of Campina Grande, Brazil. Parents/caregivers answered the Brazilian Early Childhood Oral Health Impact Scale and a questionnaire addressing socio-demographic data as well as the parent's/caregiver's perceptions regarding their child's health. Clinical exams were performed by three researchers who had undergone a calibration process for the diagnosis of dental caries, TDI and malocclusion (K = 0.83-0.85). Hierarchical Poisson regression was employed to determine the strength of associations between oral health conditions and OHRQoL (α = 5%). The multivariate model was run on three levels obeying a hierarchical approach from distal to proximal determinants: 1) socio-demographic data; 2) perceptions of health; and 3) oral health conditions.
The prevalence of impact from oral health conditions on OHRQoL was 32.1% among the children and 26.2% among the families. The following variables were significantly associated with a impact on OHRQoL among the children: birth order of child (PR = 1.430; 95% CI: 1.045-1.958), parent's/caregiver's perception of child's oral health as poor (PR = 1.732; 95% CI: 1.399-2.145), cavitated lesions (PR = 2.596; 95% CI: 1.982-3.400) and TDI (PR = 1.413; 95% CI: 1.161-1.718). The following variables were significantly associated with a impact on OHRQoL among the families: parent's/caregiver's perception of child's oral health as poor (PR = 2.116; 95% CI: 1.624-2.757), cavitated lesions (PR = 2.809; 95% CI: 2.009-3.926) and type of TDI (PR = 2.448; 95% CI: 1.288-4.653).
Cavitated lesions and TDI exerted a impact on OHRQoL of the preschool children and their families. Parents'/caregivers' perception of their child's oral health as poor and the birth order of the child were predictors of a greater impact on OHRQoL.
龋齿、牙外伤（TDI）和错颌畸形是学龄前儿童常见的口腔健康问题，会对儿童的身心健康产生影响。因此，评估这些口腔健康问题对儿童口腔健康相关生活质量（OHRQoL）的影响非常重要。本研究旨在评估口腔健康状况对学龄前儿童及其家庭 OHRQoL 的影响。
本研究为基于幼儿园的横断面研究，在巴西坎皮纳格兰德市招募了 843 名学龄前儿童。家长/看护人回答了巴西儿童早期口腔健康影响量表和一份问卷，内容包括社会人口统计学数据以及家长/看护人对其子女健康状况的看法。由 3 名经过龋齿、TDI 和错颌畸形诊断校准的研究人员进行临床检查（K 值为 0.83-0.85）。采用分层泊松回归来确定口腔健康状况与 OHRQoL 之间的关联强度（α=5%）。多变量模型在三个层次上运行，遵循从远端到近端决定因素的分层方法：1）社会人口统计学数据；2）健康认知；3）口腔健康状况。
843 名儿童中有 32.1%、843 名家长/看护人中有 26.2%的儿童及其家庭受到口腔健康状况对 OHRQoL 的影响。以下变量与儿童的 OHRQoL 受到影响显著相关：儿童的出生顺序（PR=1.430；95%CI：1.045-1.958）、家长/看护人对儿童口腔健康状况的认知为差（PR=1.732；95%CI：1.399-2.145）、龋损（PR=2.596；95%CI：1.982-3.400）和 TDI（PR=1.413；95%CI：1.161-1.718）。以下变量与家庭的 OHRQoL 受到影响显著相关：家长/看护人对儿童口腔健康状况的认知为差（PR=2.116；95%CI：1.624-2.757）、龋损（PR=2.809；95%CI：2.009-3.926）和 TDI 类型（PR=2.448；95%CI：1.288-4.653）。
龋损和 TDI 对学龄前儿童及其家庭的 OHRQoL 产生了影响。家长/看护人对子女口腔健康状况的认知较差以及儿童的出生顺序是影响 OHRQoL 的预测因素。
