Memarpour Mahtab, Dadaein Shorangize, Fakhraei Ebrahim, Vossoughi Mehrdad
Oral and Dental Disease Research Center, Department of Pediatric Dentistry, School of Dentistry, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
Caries Res. 2016;50(5):433-442. doi: 10.1159/000446877. Epub 2016 Aug 10.
Early childhood caries, a serious health problem among young children, can be prevented with effective intervention. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of oral health education and a fluoride varnish in the prevention of caries in children under the age of 3 years. For this single-blind randomized parallel group 1-year clinical trial in Shiraz, 300 children aged 12-24 months with sound primary teeth were selected and randomly divided into three groups (n = 100): (1) control: no preventive intervention; (2) oral health counseling, and (3) oral health counseling and fluoride varnish at baseline and 6 months later. At baseline and 4, 8 and 12 months after the intervention, caries risk reduction was recorded as the primary outcome. The mothers' knowledge and performance regarding oral health in children was used as a secondary outcome. A total of 260 children (mean age: 20.49 ± 7.33 months) completed the study. Compared to group 1, caries risk reduction in group 2 was 28% (95% CI: -39.05 to -17.45) and 31% in group 3 (95% CI: -41.88 to -21.73). However, there was no significant difference between groups 2 and 3 (95% CI: -8.58 to 1.47). In all groups, mothers' knowledge and performance at baseline were low; however, they increased significantly in follow-up appointments in groups 2 and 3 (p < 0.001). Oral health education increased mothers' knowledge and performance regarding oral health in children. Oral health counseling alone or associated with the use of fluoride varnish reduced the caries incidence in young children.
幼儿龋齿是幼儿中一个严重的健康问题，通过有效的干预措施可以预防。本研究的目的是评估口腔健康教育和氟化物涂膜对3岁以下儿童龋齿预防的效果。在设拉子进行的这项单盲随机平行组1年临床试验中，选取了300名12 - 24个月乳牙健康的儿童，并随机分为三组（n = 100）：（1）对照组：不进行预防性干预；（2）口腔健康咨询组；（3）在基线和6个月后进行口腔健康咨询并使用氟化物涂膜组。在基线以及干预后4、8和12个月，记录龋齿风险降低情况作为主要结局指标。将母亲们关于儿童口腔健康的知识和行为作为次要结局指标。共有260名儿童（平均年龄：20.49 ± 7.33个月）完成了研究。与第1组相比，第2组的龋齿风险降低了28%（95%置信区间：-39.05至-17.45），第3组降低了31%（95%置信区间：-41.88至-21.73）。然而，第2组和第3组之间没有显著差异（95%置信区间：-8.58至1.47）。在所有组中，母亲们在基线时的知识和行为水平较低；然而，在第2组和第3组的随访预约中，这些指标显著提高（p < 0.001）。口腔健康教育提高了母亲们关于儿童口腔健康的知识和行为。单独的口腔健康咨询或与使用氟化物涂膜相结合，均可降低幼儿龋齿的发生率。
