Oral Health In Adolescents Research Articles

An overview of oral health promotion in adolescents

The aim of this study was to overview the effectiveness of different strategies used to promote oral health in adolescents. A search of the MEDLINE via OVID database was performed through September 2007. The studies aiming to modify oral health-related lifestyle in adolescents with experimental pre- to post-test controlled study design were targeted. Oral health-related knowledge, attitudes, oral hygiene status, gingival health, and caries status were used as outcome measures for the evaluation of changes in adolescent oral health-related behaviour. All studies evaluating knowledge showed cognitive gains. Only slight or no improvement in attitude was reported. The average improvement in oral hygiene was 30-50%. A wide range 0-50% of the effects on gingival health was presented. However, the relapse in oral hygiene status towards baseline values was also observed. Only studies employing professionally applied preventive measures in conjunction with educational activities reported significantly lower caries incidence. The limited success of the behavioural interventions and the lack of diversity in methods used do not allow identification of the best ways to promote oral health towards adolescents. Therefore, alternative approaches for oral health promotion in adolescents should be explored.

A saúde bucal de adolescentes: aspectos de higiene, de cárie dentária e doença periodontal nas cidades de Recife, Pernambuco e Feira de Santana, Bahia

To characterize the oral health in adolescents in the cities of Recife and Feira de Santana, Northeast Brazil by assessment of personal hygiene and dental cavities and periodontal disease. Forty adolescents between ten and eighteen years old were assessed through an exploratory study run in Recife in 2005. In Feira de Santana, 971 adolescents (twelve years old) were examined through a cross section study in 2002. It was assessed cavity status through the number of cavitied, missing and filled teeth, visible dental plaque, bleeding gums and periodontal status. The analysis was based on Chi-Square, Kruskall-Wallis and Fisher tests, with a confidence interval of 95%. The most of adolescents followed oral hygiene practices three times a day. The DMTF values presented a median of 1.5 in Recife and averages of 1.89 in state schools, 2.17 in municipal schools and 2.39 in private schools in Feira de Santana. The bleeding gum in Recife presented a median of 27%, and in Feira de Santana the healthy sextant averages of 4.36, 4.08 and 5.16 in state, municipal and private schools respectively. The frequency of the dental cavities was low, with most of the adolescents reporting good habits of oral hygiene and favorable periodontal conditions.

Clinical, social and psychosocial factors associated with self‐rated oral health in Brazilian adolescents

The objective of this study is to investigate the main social, psychosocial and clinical factors associated with poor self-rated oral health in adolescents. A cross-sectional survey was carried out in two cities of the Distrito Federal, Brazil. Data were collected by clinical examinations and by self-administered questionnaires from 1302 adolescents aged 14- 15 years in 39 schools. Data analysis was carried out using a Poisson regression model taking into account the cluster sample. Adjusting for social, psychosocial and clinical factors, results showed that poor self-rated oral health was significantly associated (P < 0.001) with sex (males) [prevalence ratio (PR) = 0.8, 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 0.7-0.9]; low social class (PR =1.4, 95% CI: 1.2-1.6); poor self-rated general health (PR = 2.6, 95% CI: 2.3-3.1); mouth appearance (PR = 1.9, 95% CI: 1.6-2.2) and with presence of untreated dental decay (PR = 1.4, 95% CI: 1.3-1.6). The single question on self-rated oral health appears to be a simple and easy way to collect dental health information in adolescents. Assessment and understanding of self-rated oral health should take into account social, psychosocial and oral factors.

The potential impact of neighborhood empowerment on dental caries among adolescents

Empowerment has been considered a dimension of social capital. It refers to social interaction processes that enable people to enhance their individual and collective skills and to exert greater control over their lives. This relationship has not been explored in relation to dental health. The objective of this study was to investigate the association between neighborhood empowerment and dental caries in adolescents. A multilevel study was designed to assess the individual and neighborhood effects on the oral health of adolescents. Four sources of data were used: (a) clinical examinations (WHO), (b) students' questionnaires, (c) parents' questionnaires and (d) census data. The study population was 1302, 14/15-year-old students from 39 public schools of two cities of the Distrito Federal (DF), Brazil. Data analysis used logistic multilevel modeling at two levels: students (sources a and b) and neighborhood as defined by catchment areas of schools (sources c and d). High DMFT (DMFT > median, DMFT > or =3) rates were significantly lower in areas with higher levels of empowerment. This relationship was independent of socioeconomic variables at the individual and area levels and of all other individual risk factor variables such as sex, fluoride, sugar consumption, tooth brushing and dental attendance [OR for low compared with high empowerment was 1.54 (95% CI = 1.09-2.18), P = 0.014]. Neighborhood empowerment may play an important role in explaining inequalities in the levels of dental caries. New perspectives are needed so that more effective interventions can be implemented using area-based perspectives.

Epidemiological dental indices and self-perceived oral health in adolescents: ecological aspects

The aim of this study was to investigate the correlations between epidemiological indices (objective) and self-perceived oral health (subjective) in adolescents at school level, and to study gender differences in epidemiological indices and in self-perceived oral health. The study comprised two sets of data from Skaraborg County, Sweden: 1. Self-reported questionnaires answered by adolescents at all senior level schools (n = 9,559, 13-15 years). 2. Epidemiological indices based on clinical registrations of oral health in 13-15-year-old adolescents were collected in all 17 municipalities (n = 7,899). Simple and partial Pearson correlation coefficients were used to study correlations between subjective and objective oral health in the adolescents at school level. Gender differences in adolescents' subjective and objective oral health were estimated using a logistic regression model. The correlations between epidemiological index registrations and self-perceived oral health were weak. The strongest correlations were found between epidemiological indices and self-perceived gingival bleeding: 0.416 between the DS (decayed surfaces) index and self-perceived bleeding. Girls were less likely to be satisfied with the appearance of their teeth than boys were in municipalities with clinical good oral health OR 0.76 (95% CI 0.59-0.98) and with poor clinical oral health OR 0.74 (CI 0.57-0.94). No gender differences were found in the epidemiological index registrations. The currently used epidemiological indices did not reflect adolescents' own perceptions of their oral health at school level and they could not recognize or identify gender differences. Surveillance of oral health in young people should include information on self-perceived oral health.

Estilos de vida determinantes de la salud oral en adolescentes de Vitoria-Gasteiz: evaluación

To assess the factors determining oral health in adolescents in school at Vitoria (Gasteiz).Design. Descriptive epidemiological study. Randomised representative sample of 1,380 students from public and private schools. Setting. Vitoria (Gasteiz). MAIN MASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: A questionnaire on bucco-dental health was self-administered. 41.9% of the adolescents brushed their teeth three times or more a day (2.2 ( 0.98 times a day), with greater frequency in girls. 64% never used dental floss, and 30% did so only at times. 88.1% did not complement their oral hygiene with mouth-washes. Consumption of commercial cakes and pastries was 0.74 ( 1.12 times a day; and of sweets, 1.58 ( 3.15 times a day. 81.9% of the adolescents valued their mouth and dental health the same as the health of other organs of their bodies. 63.5% did not know whether any compound was added to the water as a preventive measure against dental disease; and 83.2% of those who thought something was added did not know what compound it was. 66.7% had been to the dentist during the previous year; 28.2% had not been for over a year. The oral health habits of adolescents in Vitoria (Gasteiz) show deficiencies that could be corrected through Health Education Programmes and promotion of the use of preventive dental services.

Changes in the oral health of adolescents treated by the Finnish public dental services between the ages of 13 and 15 years.

Oral cavity health was monitored in 2422 young people aged 13-15 years attending four health centres in Finland between 1992 and 1995. Assessments were made in terms of DMF, D and CPITN indices at clinical examinations. Of those who had no carious teeth at the initial examination, 60% did not develop cavities during the whole period, whereas half of those who had at least two carious teeth at the initial examination developed at least three new carious teeth. The treatment time needed by the latter accounted for half of the total time expended by the researchers until the end of the period. Costs can be saved or new patients brought into the dental care system by reorganizing the treatment of the patients who suffer from abundant caries and by reducing the resources devoted to the treatment of healthy patients.

Oral health in adolescents from a small French town

In France, caries are more prevalent in rural areas than in large cities. This study analyzed the relationship between number of oral health indices and some known risk factors (toothbrushing, sugar consumption, saliva components) and sociodemographic factors in adolescents from a small town. The sample included 112 children aged 12-14 in the north-east of France. School marks was found to be better linked with dental caries indices than the socio-occupational category of parents: gingival index (GI), DMFS, DMFT and caries severity (CS) significantly increased with decreasing school marks; oral plaque was related to socio-occupational of parents. The analysis using the regression method showed that the variance explained by the various factors studied was modest (between 23 and 30%) for GI, initial caries sites (IS), DS, DMFS, DMFT and CS, and was small for plaque (5%) and calculus (3%). This would be due in part to the wide dispersion of these indices. The sex had a non-significant regression coefficient for all oral health indices investigated. For GI, only mutans streptococci (MS) and plaque had a significant regression coefficient. Calculus was explained by any factor considered. Only MS had a significant part in plaque. IS was explained by MS, toothbrushing and age. For DS, only toothbrushing, MS and sweet drinks during meals had a significant part. DMFS and DMFT were explained only by MS and age. CS was explained by MS, age, salivary buffer pH, salivary flow rate, and toothbrushing.

Behavioral dental science. Part VIII. The dentist's rating and adolescents' perceptions of oral health

The purpose of this study was twofold. The first objective was to measure the periodontal status and perceptions of oral health in adolescents. The second objective was to determine the effects that a program of dental health education would have on their periodontal status and perceptions of oral health. The dental health education with a 90-minute lecture had been given to eleventh-grade students (352) in the previous year. The dental health education program was not carried out in tenth-grade students (442) yet. The oral examination was performed by a dentist for both grades. The examination time was about ten seconds per person. The students' periodontal status was scored as "excellent (+2)," "good (+1)," "questionable (0)," "poor (-1)," or "very poor (-2)" according to the criteria of an Oral Rating Index (ORI) System proposed by the present authors. The level of students' perceptions was assessed by the cognition score of our dental health test (10 items concerning dental attitudes and behavior). Main results were as follows: 1. Only 6% of the 10-th grade students were judged as having "excellent (+2)" oral health. Thirty-six percent were "very poor (-2)" or "poor (-1)" periodontal status. 2. The mean cognition score and the mean ORI score of the 11-th grade students were significantly greater for each sex group than those of the 10-th grade students. 3. The cognition score showed a clear relationship to the ORI score in each grade and in all. The behavioral component of the cognition score was more closely related to the ORI score. These findings suggest that the dental health education contributes to the improvement of periodontal status as well as that of perceptions. Furthermore, the ORI may be utilized for a screening system to evaluate adolescents' periodontal status quickly and effectively.