Floríndez Lucía I, Como Dominique H, Floríndez Daniella C, Vigen Cheryl, Floríndez Francesca M, Cermak Sharon A
USC Mrs. T.H. Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy in the Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Willamette University, Salem, Oregon, USA.
Health Equity. 2021 Apr 19;5(1):185-193. doi: 10.1089/heq.2020.0078. eCollection 2021.
This pilot study used data from a survey to examine the knowledge, attitudes, and practices about oral care of Latinx parents/caregivers of children with or without autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to identify gaps to focus future intervention. Sixty English-speaking Latinx parents/caregivers who had a child between 4 and 14 years with or without ASD (=31 ASD, =29 typically developing [TD]) completed a questionnaire on oral health knowledge, practices, access to care, and demographics. Caregiver responses were compared, and gaps in knowledge and practices were identified. There were no significant differences in parent age, child age, income, insured status, or overall knowledge scores, only a significant difference in education (=0.02), with the ASD group reporting less. Scores for knowledge, attitudes, access and practice were all nonsignificantly positively correlated, as was attitudes with access and practice. However, knowledge and attitudes were significantly negatively correlated. Additional significant findings were parents who had lower income and education, had lower oral knowledge scores, decreased frequency of dental visits, increased feelings of being discriminated against, children with increased fear of the dentist, and decreased ease of finding a dentist. Factors such as income, education, ethnicity, and having a child with ASD can influence what Latinx parents and caregivers know about oral health and how their children experience receiving dental care. Latinx parents/caregivers of children with and without ASD report barriers to dental care, including difficulty attending visits or feeling stigmatized by their dental provider due to their ethnicity. Fear of the dentist is significantly correlated with ASD diagnosis and lower social demographics of the parent, and may contribute to a reduction in preventative oral care visits as well. Health care providers should consider these perspectives when providing care to this population to mitigate further oral health inequities.
这项试点研究使用了一项调查的数据，以检查患有或未患有自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）的拉丁裔儿童的父母/照顾者在口腔护理方面的知识、态度和行为，以找出差距，为未来的干预措施提供重点。60名讲英语的拉丁裔父母/照顾者，他们有一名4至14岁患有或未患有ASD的儿童（n = 31名患有ASD，n = 29名发育正常[TD]），完成了一份关于口腔健康知识、行为、就医机会和人口统计学的问卷。比较了照顾者的回答，并确定了知识和行为方面的差距。父母年龄、孩子年龄、收入、保险状况或总体知识得分没有显著差异，只有教育程度存在显著差异（P = 0.02），患有ASD的组报告的教育程度较低。知识、态度、就医机会和行为的得分均呈非显著正相关，态度与就医机会和行为也是如此。然而，知识和态度呈显著负相关。其他重要发现包括，收入和教育程度较低的父母，口腔知识得分较低，看牙医的频率降低，受歧视感增加，孩子对牙医的恐惧增加，以及找牙医的难度增加。收入、教育程度、种族以及孩子患有ASD等因素会影响拉丁裔父母和照顾者对口腔健康的了解，以及他们的孩子接受牙科护理的体验。患有和未患有ASD的拉丁裔儿童的父母/照顾者报告了牙科护理方面的障碍，包括难以就诊或因种族而受到牙科提供者的歧视。对牙医的恐惧与ASD诊断以及父母较低的社会人口统计学特征显著相关，也可能导致预防性口腔护理就诊次数减少。医疗保健提供者在为这一人群提供护理时应考虑这些因素，以减少进一步的口腔健康不平等。
