Dental caries status and the risk factors of children 1-24 months old

Abstract

The objectives of this analytical cross-sectional study was to explore dental caries, oral hygiene and the risk factors related to oral status of pre-school children  1-24 months old.   The samples included 5,388 children who came for well child care program from 170 government hospitals in 12 provinces located in 4 regions. The data about oral care behaviors and oral status of the children were collected by using oral health surveillance recording form recommended by the Department of Health. It was founded that 11.3 % of children had visible plaque on their 4 anterior teeth, 7.9 % had white lesion and 6.6 % had at least 1 decay tooth. For their oral health behavior, 47.5 % of children were claimed to have their teeth brushed every day, while 36.4 % used fluoridated toothpaste. The children of 15.5 % had snack more than 2 times a day, 18.0 % were fed by sugar added milk, while 68.9 % used bottle milk. The results also showed that 71.1 % of children had their oral checked up when attended the well child care clinic, 32.6 % received topical fluoride varnish, and the treatment service covered only 1.7 % of children. When analyzed for the association of dental caries and risk behavior, it was found that sugar added milk, snack ≥2 times a day, visible plaque accumulation, white lesion were significant associated to the dental caries (p<.05). However no association were found between using of bottle milk, fluoride varnish application and dental caries, and adverse association were found between tooth brushing, using fluoridated toothpaste and the dental caries of the children.