Abstract
Children with special needs are considered to be a high risk group for dental diseases especially dental caries and periodontal diseases. Objective: Assessment of oral health status of children with special needs in Delhi, India. Material and methods: A cross sectional survey was conducted on 414 children with special needs belonging to four different disability groups i.e. Intellectually Disabled (ID), Physically Challenged, visually and hearing impaired. WHO Oral Health Assessment Form for children, 2013 was used for assessment of various parameters of oral health among the study population. Results: Of the 414 children, 305 were males and 109 females. Overall caries prevalence was 38%. Mean DMF value was 3.71 with ID children having higher mean than the other groups.A significant positive correlation was also observed between age and dental caries. Gingival condition was also worse in ID children and best in physically challenged ones. Highest numbers of trauma cases were recorded in visually impaired group. Delayed eruption of permanent teeth was most common in hearing impaired. 98.7% children required some form of dental treatment. Conclusion: Oral health of children with special needs was poor and urgent attention is required to plan a comprehensive dental health care programme for them.
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