Dental and oral health problems in elementary school children: A scoping review

Abstract

Abstract Background Several literature reviews with child samples have been discussed. However, reviews of dental and oral health problems in primary school-age children based on location in the oral cavity and indicators of prevalence measurement have not been synthesized. Objectives This review aimed to synthesize research on dental and oral health problems that often occur in elementary school-aged children.The search process in this review refers to predetermined clinical questions, namely PCC: population (P), concept (C), and context (C). Eligibilty criteria (1) articles in 2013–2018; (2) subjects are children aged 6–12 years; (3) articles describing dental and oral health problems; (4) articles are the original articles or research papers or research articles; and (5) a cross-sectional study type. Source of evidence The research on dental and oral health problems in children was searched through the ScienceDirect, Proquest, Medline (via Pubmed), and Ebsco databases. Charting methods The selection stage is explained in detail using the PRISMA flow diagram. Results The most common dental and oral health problems in children located in hard tissue are caries (89.47%) and in soft tissue are periodontal diseases (21.05%). Some indicators can be used to measure the prevalence of diseases in hard and soft tissues, namely decay, missing, filling teeth (DMFT) and gingival indeks (GI) and also community periodontal indeks (CPI). Conclusion Dental and oral health problems that often occur in children aged 6–12 years located in hard tissue are caries as measured by DMFT, and those located in soft tissues are periodontal diseases as measured by GI and CPI in the cross-sectional studies.