Risk Factors for Early Childhood Caries among Children in Multi-centered Montessori at Karachi
Keywords:
Dental caries, primary dentition, breastfeeding practices, factors, pediatric dentistry, oral health, child, tooth discolourationAbstract
OBJECTIVE: To explore the possible risk factors associated with early childhood caries (ECC) at one point in time in Montessori children.
METHODOLOGY: A multi-centred cross-sectional study was conducted where n= 370 children aged ? 37 to ? 72 months from different Montessori of Karachi were randomly selected. After getting informed consent from the caregivers, a self-administered questionnaire was distributed to collect data. The oral examination of children was conducted to assess their dental caries status using the decayed, missing, and filled teeth (DMFT) index. Data was analyzed using Stata/SE version 17.
RESULTS: The factors significantly associated with ECC in Montessori children were the age of leaving bottle feeding, sleeping with a bottle and delayed initiation of toothbrushing [p ? 0.05]. Guided toothbrushing practice was observed to be higher in children with ECC [AOR=1.77, p=0.048]. The multivariate analysis also suggested that an increased toothbrushing duration significantly reduced the chances of ECC by 70% in Montessori children.
CONCLUSION: This study concludes that bottle feeding alone or in combination with breastfeeding, prolonged bottle feeding, and children sleeping with a bottle are significant predictors of ECC. Increased brushing duration significantly reduces the chances of ECC.
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