Impact of dental caries on daily performance of children

Abstract

The aim of the study: to estimate the impact of dental caries on the daily performance of school-age children. Material and methods. The clinical material of this paper is the data of the investigation of 104 children aged between 12 and 18 years. 48 subjects with dental caries were included in the research group (G1). The control group (G0) consisted of 56 caries-free children. Indices of tooth decay frequency and carious experience were estimated. The Child-Oral Impacts on Daily Performance (Child-OIDP) questionnaire was used to assess quality of life (QL). The study was conducted in accordance with ethical requirements with the written consent of the children’s parents. Results. The prevalence of the impact of oral diseases on the main daily performances was 68.75±6.69%, p<0.01 in children with caries and 42.86±6.61 in children without carious lesions. A significant moderate positive association was established between the indicators of DMFT/DMFT+dft tooth decay impairment (ρ=+0.56, p<0.01) and the intensity of the children’s quality of life disorder. Conclusions. The high prevalence of the impact of dental caries on the QL of children with dental caries indicates the increased prevalence of dental treatment needs and the inadequacy of dental care for this population group.