BackgroundThe objective this study was to investigate the influence of clinical conditions, socioeconomic status, home environment, subjective perceptions of parents and schoolchildren about general and oral health on schoolchildren's oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL).MethodsA sample of 515 schoolchildren, aged 12 years was randomly selected by conglomerate analysis from public and private schools in the city of Juiz de Fora, Brazil. The schoolchildren were clinically examined for presence of caries lesions (DMFT and dmft index), dental trauma, enamel defects, periodontal status (presence/absence of bleeding), dental treatment and orthodontic treatment needs (DAI). The SiC index was calculated. The participants were asked to complete the Brazilian version of Child Perceptions Questionnaire (CPQ11-14) and a questionnaire about home environment. Questions were asked about the presence of general diseases and children's self-perception of their general and oral health status. In addition, a questionnaire was sent to their parents inquiring about their socioeconomic status (family income, parents' education level, home ownership) and perceptions about the general and oral health of their school-aged children. The chi-square test was used for comparisons between proportions. Poisson's regression was used for multivariate analysis with adjustment for variances.ResultsUnivariate analysis revealed that school type, monthly family income, mother's education, family structure, number of siblings, use of cigarettes, alcohol and drugs in the family, parents' perception of oral health of schoolchildren, schoolchildren's self perception their general and oral health, orthodontic treatment needs were significantly associated with poor OHRQoL (p < 0.001). After adjusting for potential confounders, variables were included in a Multivariate Poisson regression. It was found that the variables children's self perception of their oral health status, monthly family income, gender, orthodontic treatment need, mother's education, number of siblings, and household overcrowding showed a strong negative effect on oral health-related quality of life.ConclusionsIt was concluded that the clinical, socioeconomic and home environment factors evaluated exerted a negative impact on the oral health-related quality of life of schoolchildren, demonstrating the importance of health managers addressing all these factors when planning oral health promotion interventions for this population.

BackgroundRecent researches have pointed out the need to consider the functional and psychosocial dimensions of oral health, such as Oral Health-related Quality of Life (OHRQoL). The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of oral health status, socioeconomic factors and home environment of children on the four health domains of Child Perceptions Questionnaire (CPQ11-14).MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted in Brazil with a sample of 286 schoolchildren aged 12 years and their parents. The schoolchildren were clinically examined, and participants were asked to complete the CPQ11-14, as well as a questionnaire about home environment. In addition, a questionnaire was sent to each child’s parents asking them about family socioeconomic status. The chi-square test and Poisson’s regression analysis were performed.ResultsAfter adjusting for potential confounders, variables sex, monthly family income, mothers’ education showed a statistically significant association with all health domains of the CPQ11-14. The family structure and presence of bleeding impacted on emotional (p = 0.0135), and social (p = 0.0010) well-being health domain scores. Orthodontic treatment need showed a strong negative effect on functional limitations domain score (p = 0.0021).ConclusionsClinical and socio-environmental factors had different impacts on domains of oral health-related quality of life, demonstrating the need to consider these conditions in planning strategies for the oral health of schoolchildren.

Socio-economic factors and presence of caries lesions, even if treated, were risk indicators for poor school performance.

This study aimed to evaluate the impact of dental caries treatment on oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) among schoolchildren and the responsiveness of the Child Perceptions Questionnaire (CPQ8-10 ) instrument. Brazilian schoolchildren, 8-10 yr of age, were randomly selected and assigned to two groups--dental caries treatment (DCT) and caries-free (CF)--according to their caries experience [decayed, missing, or filled primary teeth (dmft) and decayed, missing or filled secondary teeth (DMFT) values of ≥ 0]. The CPQ8-10 instrument was administered at baseline and at 4 wk of follow-up (i.e. 4 wk after completion of dental treatment). In the DCT group, increases in CPQ8-10 scores were observed between the baseline and follow-up results. However, longitudinal evaluation of the CF group demonstrated no statistically significant difference in CPQ8-10 scores. Responsiveness of the CPQ8-10 instrument (magnitude of change in CPQ8-10 scores) in the DCT group was greater (effect size >0.7) than in the CF group. The findings of this study show that dental caries treatment has an important impact on OHRQoL of children. The CPQ8-10 was considered an acceptable instrument for longitudinal measurement of changes in OHRQoL.

BackgroundThe objective of this study was to compare the socioeconomic and family characteristics of underprivileged schoolchildren with and without curative dental needs participating in a dental health program.MethodsA random sample of 1411 of 8-to-10 year-old Brazilian schoolchildren was examined and two sample groups were included in the cross-sectional study: 544 presented curative dental needs and the other 867 schoolchildren were without curative dental needs. The schoolchildren were examined for the presence of caries lesions using the DMFT index and their parents were asked to answer questions about socioenvironmental characteristics of their families. Logistic regression models were adjusted estimating the Odds Ratios (OR), their 95% confidence intervals (CI), and significance levels.ResultsAfter adjusting for potential confounders, it was found that families earning more than one Brazilian minimum wage, having fewer than four residents in the house, families living in homes owned by them, and children living with both biological parents were protective factors for the presence of dental caries, and consequently, curative dental needs.ConclusionsSocioeconomic status and family structure influences the curative dental needs of children from underprivileged communities. In this sense, dental health programs should plan and implement strategic efforts to reduce inequities in oral health status and access to oral health services of vulnerable schoolchildren and their families.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the impact of oral diseases, socioeconomic status, and family environmental factors on changes in the perception of oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) in adolescents. A prospective cohort study was conducted in Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais, Brazil, with a sample of 286 twelve-year-old adolescents from public and private schools, selected by means of multistage random sampling. The adolescents were clinically examined for dental caries experience (number of decayed, missing, and filled teeth -DMFT index), presence of bleeding, and orthodontic treatment needs. They were asked to complete the Brazilian version of the Child Perceptions Questionnaire ). In addition, parents answered a questionnaire about their socioeconomic status and family environmental characteristics. After 3 years, the adolescents were contacted again to participate in the research. Logistic regression models, with explanatory variables assessed both individually and jointly, were used to determine which independent variables impacted longitudinally on OHRQoL. The final result demonstrated that only DMFT explained part of the response variability in CPQ 11-14 scores. In conclusion, caries experience was an important predictor of OHRQoL in adolescents followed up for 3 years.

Aim: To investigate evidence of associations between oral health status of children and adolescents and their school performance and lost school days due to dental problems. Methods: PubMed electronic database was searched for scientific papers published between 1990 and 2013. Twenty-one papers that attempted to investigate the impact of oral health on school performance and lost school days were retrieved. Brief descriptions of each study's methodology and outcomes were presented and discussed. Results: Although the papers reported statistically significant associations between school performance or lost school days and oral health conditions of schoolchildren, all of them were cross-sectional and ecological studies with an observational design, which may not provide full information about causes and effects. In addition, the lack of standardized criteria did not allow comparisons among the studies retrieved in the search. Conclusions: Oral diseases appear to impact on lost school days and school performance of children and policy-makers should address this issue when planning health promotion interventions in school settings. However, standardized materials and methodologies as well as longitudinal studies using valid and reliable criteria are needed to confirm the causes or risks of oral health factors in school performance, generating hypotheses for future research and providing important data for determining effective actions in school health programs.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of socioeconomic status, home environment, and self-perception of health conditions on schoolchildren's dental caries experience. A total of 515 twelve-year-old schoolchildren from Juiz de Fora, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil, were selected into a random multistage sample. The schoolchildren were examined for the presence of caries lesions using the decayed/missing/filled teeth (DMFT) index and categorized as caries-free (DMFT = 0) or with caries experience (DMFT > 0). The participants and their parents were asked to answer a questionnaire about socioeconomic status, home environment, and self-perception of their health conditions. The hierarchical multiple regression model was used to assess the associations, since a binary response variable was assumed. The bivariate analysis revealed that variables at four levels, such as type of school, monthly family income, parents' education, home ownership, number of people living in the household, household overcrowding, parents' perception of their children's oral health, and schoolchildren's self-perception of their oral health (p < 0.05), were significantly associated with children's worse dental caries conditions. The regression model results showed that type of school and monthly family income had a strong negative effect on schoolchildren's dental caries experience (p < 0.05) in the final statistical model, where all levels were included. It was observed that socioeconomic factors were considered a strong risk indicator of schoolchildren's caries experience among the investigated social determinants of oral health.