Early Childhood Caries among a Bedouin community residing in the eastern outskirts of Jerusalem

Alon Livny,Rula Assali,Harold D Sgan-Cohen

doi:10.1186/1471-2458-7-167

Abstract

BackgroundECC is commonly prevalent among underprivileged populations. The Jahalin Bedouin are a severely deprived, previously nomadic tribe, dwelling on the eastern outskirts of Jerusalem. The aim of this study was to assess ECC prevalence and potentially associated variables.Methods102 children aged 12–36 months were visually examined for caries, mothers' anterior dentition was visually subjectively appraised, demographic and health behavior data were collected by interview.ResultsAmong children, 17.6% demonstrated ECC, among mothers, 37.3% revealed "fairly bad" anterior teeth. Among children drinking bottles there was about twice the level of ECC (20.3%) than those breast-fed (13.2%). ECC was found only among children aged more than one year (p < 0.001); more prevalent ECC (55.6%) was found among large (10–13 children) families than among smaller families (1–5 children: 13.5%, 6–9 children: 15.6%) (p = 0.009); ECC was more prevalent among children of less educated mothers (p = 0.037); ECC was more prevalent among mothers with "fairly poor" anterior dentition (p = 0.04). Oral hygiene practices were poor.ConclusionECC levels in this community were not very high but neither low. This changing population might be on the verge of a wider dental disease "epidemic". Public health efforts clearly need to be invested towards the oral health and general welfare of this community.

Highlights

Early Childhood Caries (ECC) is commonly prevalent among underprivileged populations
ECC prevalence varies from population to population; children of disadvantaged subpopulations, regardless of race, ethnicity or culture, have been found to be most vulnerable [1]
The present study focused on the Bedouin tribe of Al-Jahalin, which includes about 2,200 inhabitants residing in an area east of Jerusalem

Summary

Introduction

ECC is commonly prevalent among underprivileged populations. The Jahalin Bedouin are a severely deprived, previously nomadic tribe, dwelling on the eastern outskirts of Jerusalem. Childhood Caries (ECC) is a serious public health problem in both developing and industrialized countries It continues to affect babies and preschool children worldwide. ECC prevalence varies from population to population; children of disadvantaged subpopulations, regardless of race, ethnicity or culture, have been found to be most vulnerable [1]. Oral hygiene is usually poor, exposure to fluoride is probably insufficient, and general psychosocial stress is common [7,8] These variables may impede the natural resistance to the disease cycle of bacterial invasion, demineralization, and dental caries [2]

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Discussion

Conclusion