Center for Psychosocial Medicine, Department of Medical Psychology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246 Hamburg, Germany.
Center for Dental and Oral Medicine, Department of Periodontics, Preventive and Restorative Dentistry, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246 Hamburg, Germany.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 May 25;19(11):6408. doi: 10.3390/ijerph19116408.
In 2020, the number of reported cases of child maltreatment in Germany has never been higher and most of them showed signs of neglect. Most of the time, dental neglect (DN) appears together with a general form of neglect, and includes, apart from caries, many other negative short- and long-term effects for the affected child. In this study, the prevalence of DN in Germany and the way dental practices are currently addressing the topic are examined. Moreover, this study explored whether the experiences of German dentists with DN are related to their work experience, their gender or further education about DN. The data was collected using an anonymous questionnaire. The hypotheses were tested using unpaired -tests based on differences in mean values. The three most common reasons for a suspected case of child maltreatment were the interaction of children with parents, or a legal guardian, insufficient oral or general hygiene, and grave caries. Even though most of the participating dentists agree that it is the task of the dentist to report suspected cases of child maltreatment, only few of them have done so in the past themselves. Not only insecurity about recognition and whom to contact in the suspected case, but also concern about unfounded suspicion were the most common reasons not to report a suspected case of DN. The detection and communication of suspected cases should be encouraged in order to protect affected children.
2020 年，德国报告的虐待儿童案件数量从未如此之高，其中大多数案件都有忽视的迹象。大多数情况下，牙科忽视（DN）与一般形式的忽视同时出现，除了龋齿外，还包括许多其他对受影响儿童的短期和长期负面影响。在这项研究中，检查了德国 DN 的流行率以及牙科实践目前如何处理该主题。此外，本研究还探讨了德国牙医对 DN 的经验是否与其工作经验、性别或关于 DN 的进一步教育有关。使用匿名问卷收集数据。使用基于均值差异的配对检验测试假设。怀疑虐待儿童的三个最常见原因是儿童与父母或法定监护人的互动、口腔或一般卫生不足以及严重龋齿。尽管大多数参与调查的牙医都认为报告疑似虐待儿童的案件是牙医的任务，但过去他们自己这样做的人却寥寥无几。不报告疑似 DN 病例的最常见原因不仅是对识别和联系涉嫌案件的不安全感，还有对毫无根据的怀疑的担忧。应鼓励发现和交流疑似病例，以保护受影响的儿童。
