Patient-Centered Caries Prevention in Children may be More Cost-Effective in the Long Term than Traditional Dental Care

Shenkin, Jonathan D.

doi:10.1016/j.jebdp.2010.11.004

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 8 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…There is a clear need to reduce the development of childhood caries in addition to getting children to the dentist for cleanings, fillings and extractions [16]. Not only will this improve children’s oral health in the short and long term, but may also be more cost effective [17]. Public health policy makers may need to consider programs where the most at-risk children are identified and are provided preventive interventions at the family and/or community level.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Childhood caries in the state of Kentucky, USA: a cross-sectional study

2012

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundUntreated dental caries afflicts almost one third of school-aged children in the United States and many of them are from disadvantaged families. This cross-sectional study was undertaken to investigate the prevalence of untreated caries in north central Kentucky, USA and to examine the relationships between the available demographic variables and untreated childhood caries as reported on the forms from the Smile Kentucky! program.MethodsDuring the fall of 2008, caries status was assessed during the visual oral screening examination component of “SmileKentucky!”– a model of the American Dental Association’s Give Kids A Smile program. Parents had completed brief surveys concerning 3,488 elementary school children aged 5 to 13 years who participated in the program. A secondary analysis was conducted using univariate, bivariate and multivariate statistical methods.ResultsUntreated caries was reported in 33% of children. Bivariate and logistic regression analyses found that the most significant risk factors for having untreated caries were living in the metropolitan Louisville, Kentucky area, not having had a dental visit in the previous 3 years and not having any form of dental insurance.ConclusionsUntreated caries in elementary school children is prevalent in north-central Kentucky despite efforts to improve access to care. The results suggest that additional family and community preventive initiatives are needed to reduce the development of childhood caries in this area of the United States.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%