Impact of parental dental anxiety on the oral health-related quality of life of preschool children without negative dental experience

Abstract

BackgroundOral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) is negatively affected by negative dental experiences. It is unclear how parental dental anxiety affects the OHRQoL of children who have not had a negative dental experience. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the impact of parental dental anxiety on the OHRQoL of preschool children without negative dental experiences. MethodsThis cross-sectional study enrolled 412 parents of preschoolers aged 4–6 years. The parents answered a questionnaire on sociodemographic status, negative dental experience, dental anxiety, and perception of their children's OHRQoL (Early Childhood Oral Health Impact Scale, ECOHIS). Children with negative dental experiences were not included in the study. ResultsAn increase in parental dental anxiety was found to have a negative impact on OHRQoL (p<0.05). The adjusted model showed that at all levels of parental dental anxiety, the sex and age of the children, as well as the parents’ educational level had no impact on OHRQoL (p>0.05). Furthermore, at all levels of parental dental anxiety, regular dental visits by children had the greatest negative impact on the OHRQoL (p<0.001). ConclusionThis study revealed that an increase in parental dental anxiety as well as dental visits negatively affected the OHRQoL of preschoolers without a negative dental experience.