Department of Paediatric Dentistry, University of the Western Cape, Cape Town, South Africa.
Clin Exp Dent Res. 2020 Feb;6(1):75-81. doi: 10.1002/cre2.251. Epub 2019 Nov 13.
Children continue to suffer from the impact of the human immunodeficiency virus-acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) pandemic. In Cape Town, these children receive medical care including antiretroviral therapy from facilities like Tygerberg Hospital's Paediatric Infectious Diseases Clinic. HIV-infected children may experience an increased caries experience when compared with their healthy peers.
The aim of this study was to determine the oral health status of HIV-infected children younger than 12 years receiving antiviral drugs at the Paediatric Infectious Diseases Clinic.
A cross-sectional survey was conducted among children aged between 2 and 12 years presenting at this clinic. Caregivers were interviewed to obtain information regarding health seeking behaviour, oral hygiene practices and dietary habits. A single clinician undertook a standardized clinical intraoral examination according to the World Health Organization guidelines, with modifications.
Sixty-six children were recruited. A high prevalence of dental caries (78.8%) and an unmet treatment need of 90.4% were recorded among the participants. Most children had never visited the dentist, and those who did had mainly received emergency dental care.
The high prevalence of severe dental caries in this population highlights the need for oral health awareness and the inclusion of oral health care in the comprehensive care of children with HIV.
The study highlights the importance of collaborating with health professions outside of dentistry. Doctors and nurses are often the first health professionals to come into contact with children with special needs. They should therefore be made aware of the early signs of decay so that these patients can be referred for dental treatment timeously. Holistic management of children with special healthcare needs is essential to improve their overall well-being.
儿童仍在遭受人类免疫缺陷病毒获得性免疫缺陷综合征（HIV/AIDS）大流行的影响。在开普敦，这些儿童在泰格伯格医院儿科传染病诊所等设施接受包括抗逆转录病毒疗法在内的医疗服务。与健康同龄人相比，HIV 感染儿童可能会经历更高的龋齿发生率。
本研究旨在确定在儿科传染病诊所接受抗病毒药物治疗的 12 岁以下 HIV 感染儿童的口腔健康状况。
在该诊所就诊的 2 至 12 岁儿童中进行了横断面调查。对照顾者进行访谈，以获取有关寻医行为、口腔卫生习惯和饮食习惯的信息。一名临床医生根据世界卫生组织的指南，对所有儿童进行了标准化的临床口腔检查，并进行了修改。
共招募了 66 名儿童。参与者中龋齿的高患病率（78.8%）和未满足的治疗需求（90.4%）。大多数儿童从未看过牙医，而那些看过牙医的儿童主要接受的是紧急牙科护理。
该人群中严重龋齿的高患病率突出表明需要提高口腔健康意识，并将口腔保健纳入 HIV 儿童的综合护理中。
该研究强调了与牙科以外的卫生专业人员合作的重要性。医生和护士通常是首先接触有特殊需要儿童的卫生专业人员。因此，他们应该意识到早期龋齿的迹象，以便及时将这些患者转介接受牙科治疗。全面管理有特殊医疗需求的儿童对于提高他们的整体健康状况至关重要。
