Department of Public Health & Preventive Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR (IBA, WEL, MRL).
Office of Health Policy, Research, & Development, Ministry of Health, Republic of Palau (IBA, BMW).
Hawaii J Health Soc Welf. 2020 Jun 1;79(6 Suppl 2):33-39.
Both oral disease and middle ear infections are highly prevalent in Pacific Island children. These diseases are multifactorial and likely attributable in part to both social and environmental factors. It has been two decades since these diseases were defined in Palau, and at the time were noted to be among the most common conditions and presented a substantial burden among Palau's children. In 2006, the Ministry of Health in Palau began conducting comprehensive school health screenings in grades 1-11. While primarily used as a referral tool, this survey can also be used in epidemiologic studies to describe health trends. The current study utilized this screening data from the 2011-12 school year to characterize the prevalence of dental caries and otitis media and explore a previously suggested relationship between the two conditions, including common risk factors. It was found that over one-quarter (28.9%) of Palauan students had abnormal tympanometry results, with up to 17% indicating active otitis media. In addition, 85% of students had at least one decayed or filled tooth, with an average of 3.9 decayed or filled teeth in 12-year-olds. Both conditions were found to be more prevalent in public than in private schools; however, the two disorders were not significantly associated with each other. These findings place the prevalence of decayed, missing, and filled teeth, and otitis media in Palauan schoolchildren among the highest reported in the world. The widely recognized consequences of poor oral health and hearing impairment on learning, nutrition, and chronic disease make urgent the need for early intervention.
口腔疾病和中耳感染在太平洋岛屿儿童中非常普遍。这些疾病是多因素的，可能部分归因于社会和环境因素。自 20 年前在帕劳定义这些疾病以来，它们一直是最常见的疾病之一，给帕劳儿童带来了巨大的负担。2006 年，帕劳卫生部开始对 1 至 11 年级的学生进行全面的学校健康筛查。虽然主要用作转诊工具，但该调查也可用于流行病学研究，以描述健康趋势。本研究利用 2011-12 学年的筛查数据，描述龋齿和中耳炎的流行情况，并探讨这两种情况之间先前提出的关系，包括共同的危险因素。结果发现，超过四分之一（28.9%）的帕劳学生的鼓室图测试结果异常，多达 17%的学生患有活动性中耳炎。此外，85%的学生至少有一颗龋齿或补牙，12 岁的学生平均有 3.9 颗龋齿或补牙。与私立学校相比，这两种情况在公立学校更为普遍；然而，这两种疾病之间没有显著的相关性。这些发现表明，在帕劳学龄儿童中，龋齿、缺失和填充牙齿以及中耳炎的患病率是世界上报告最高的。口腔健康不良和听力受损对学习、营养和慢性疾病的广泛认识，迫切需要早期干预。
