Hung Man, Licari Frank W, Lipsky Martin S, Moffat Ryan, Cheever Val Joseph, Mohajeri Amir, Stewart Michael, Orton Dean, Stewart David
College of Dental Medicine, Roseman University of Health Sciences, 10894 S. Riverfront Parkway, South Jordan, UT 84095, USA.
College of Engineering & Technology, Utah Valley University, 800 W. University Parkway, Orem, UT 84058, USA.
Dent J (Basel). 2022 Mar 31;10(4):53. doi: 10.3390/dj10040053.
This study assessed the longitudinal impact of early preventive dental visits on the number of dental operative procedures in a prevention-oriented pediatric dental practice. Inclusion criteria consisted of patients zero to four years of age with at least two years of preventive services provided by the practice. Early preventive visits were the intervention and dental operative procedures were the assessed outcome. The goal was to determine if preventive visits at an early age decreased the number of operative procedures needed by the patient. The patients were divided into two groups: those with older siblings in the practice and those without older siblings in the practice. A secondary outcome was to compare these two patient groups to determine if a child who had older siblings previously treated in this preventive practice had better outcomes than those without siblings in the practice. ANCOVA tests were used to compare the average number of operative procedures in two age groups (<2 years and ≥2 years), and for those with and without dental insurance, in addition to children being younger sibling versus children without sibling, adjusting for the effect of covariates. The study sample consisted of 363 pediatric patients. Patients’ age at first visit ranged from 0 to 4 years old (mean = 2.13; SD = 1.15). The average number of operative procedures per year increased as the age at first visit increased (p < 0.05). The average number of operative procedures in two age groups (<2 years and ≥2 years) differed (p < 0.05) with those whose age at first visit ≥2 years experiencing more dental operative procedures than the younger group. The average number of operative procedures was similar between younger siblings (mean = 1.91; SD = 7.44) and children without siblings (mean = 1.54; SD = 2.1) (p > 0.05). The difference in the average number of operative procedures in children with insurance (mean = 1.59; SD = 5.25) and children without insurance (mean = 1.58; SD = 2.38) was non-significant (p > 0.05). More dental cleaning examinations were associated with fewer dental operative procedures (p < 0.05). These findings demonstrate that dental examinations before two years of age and more dental cleaning examinations lead to a decrease in the number of dental operative procedures needed by children.
本研究评估了在以预防为主的儿科牙科诊所中，早期预防性牙科就诊对牙科手术操作数量的纵向影响。纳入标准包括年龄在0至4岁之间、在该诊所接受至少两年预防性服务的患者。早期预防性就诊为干预措施，牙科手术操作为评估结果。目的是确定早期预防性就诊是否能减少患者所需的手术操作数量。患者被分为两组：在该诊所中有哥哥姐姐的患者和在该诊所中没有哥哥姐姐的患者。次要结果是比较这两组患者，以确定在该预防性诊所中曾有哥哥姐姐接受过治疗的儿童是否比没有哥哥姐姐的儿童有更好的结果。协方差分析测试用于比较两个年龄组（<2岁和≥2岁）、有和没有牙科保险的患者以及有哥哥姐姐的儿童与没有哥哥姐姐的儿童的手术操作平均数量，并对协变量的影响进行调整。研究样本包括363名儿科患者。首次就诊时患者的年龄范围为0至4岁（平均 = 2.13；标准差 = 1.15）。每年的手术操作平均数量随着首次就诊年龄的增加而增加（p < 0.05）。两个年龄组（<2岁和≥2岁）的手术操作平均数量不同（p < 0.05），首次就诊年龄≥2岁的患者比年龄较小的组经历更多的牙科手术操作。有哥哥姐姐的儿童（平均 = 1.91；标准差 = 7.44）和没有哥哥姐姐的儿童（平均 = 1.54；标准差 = 2.1）的手术操作平均数量相似（p > 0.05）。有保险的儿童（平均 = 1.59；标准差 = 5.25）和没有保险的儿童（平均 = 1.58；标准差 = 2.38）的手术操作平均数量差异不显著（p > 0.05）。更多的牙齿清洁检查与更少的牙科手术操作相关（p < 0.05）。这些发现表明，两岁前的牙科检查和更多的牙齿清洁检查会导致儿童所需的牙科手术操作数量减少。
