Abstract
ObjectivesTo assess and compare the oral health status of children with and without autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in China.MethodsThis study recruited 144 children with ASD and 228 unrelated children with typical development (TD) aged 3–16 years from China. Data were collected using parent-reported questionnaires. Oral problems (oral symptoms and habits), oral health measures (oral hygiene practice and dental care experience), and the impact on the child's quality of life (based on a modified version of the Parental-Caregiver Perception Questionnaire) were assessed and compared between the two groups.ResultsChildren with ASD had worse oral health status than children with TD. Oral symptoms were more prevalent in the ASD group, especially halitosis (p < 0.001), food impaction (p < 0.001), and oral lesions (p < 0.001), than the TD group. The rate of damaging oral habits, including mouth breathing (p < 0.001) and object biting (p < 0.05), was also high in the ASD group. Compared with the TD group, more children with ASD did not brush their teeth independently and frequently (p < 0.001), had difficulty accessing dental care (p < 0.01), and reported unpleasant dental experiences (p < 0.001). The presence of ASD was associated with decreased oral health-related quality of life (p < 0.001) in these children and their families.ConclusionOral problems such as halitosis and bad oral habits are more prevalent among children with ASD. These children also lack oral hygiene practice and dental visits. This situation negatively impacts their quality of life, and must be brought to the attention of their treating dentists.
Highlights
Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) affect one in 59 children aged 8 years in the United States, with four to five males receiving a diagnosis of ASD for every female who is diagnosed [1]
We collected 372 eligible questionnaires from a pool of 445 questionnaires completed by parents of children with ASD and typical development (TD)
We found that 95.6% of parents of children with ASD indicated their child suffered from halitosis, significantly higher than those without ASD
Summary
Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) affect one in 59 children aged 8 years in the United States, with four to five males receiving a diagnosis of ASD for every female who is diagnosed [1]. A largescale study estimated the prevalence of ASD in China was approximately 1% [2], though no official figures are currently available. This suggests there is a high possibility that dentists will encounter children with autism during their careers. Children with ASD are widely reported to have poorer oral hygiene [6,7,8,9] and worse periodontal conditions [6, 7, 9, 10] than healthy children. Most previous oral health data for children with ASD were derived from relatively small and often clinical samples, which have an overt bias compared with population/community-based samples
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