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Longitudinal study of dental health behaviors and other caries predictors in early childhood
Author(s) -
Grytten Jostein,
Rossow Ingeborg,
Holst Dorthe,
Steele Linda
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
community dentistry and oral epidemiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.061
H-Index - 101
eISSN - 1600-0528
pISSN - 0301-5661
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0528.1988.tb00581.x
Subject(s) - medicine , attendance , norwegian , longitudinal study , dental health , tooth brushing , dentistry , family medicine , linguistics , philosophy , brush , engineering , pathology , toothbrush , electrical engineering , economics , economic growth
This longitudinal study of 231 preschoolchildren from a medium sized Norwegian town had three aims: firstly, to examine the children's early dental behavior, secondly to study the variation of dental health behavior according to mother's education, mother's dental health, and her dental attendance pattern, and thirdly to identify any behavioral or social predictors of dental caries in 36‐month‐old children. Data were collected at health centers, using preceded questionnaires and examinations, when the children were 6. 18. and 36 months old. Data about the mothers were collected at the maternity ward. At 36 months of age, 80% of the children were caries free. Favorable dental behaviors were related to toothbrushing and use of fluorides. These behaviors were so well established and consistent at all ages that they can be regarded as norms for this community. The most unfavorable and inconsistent behavior was related to sugar consumption. Dental health education could be most usefully applied to this area, where the greatest potential for improvement in behavior exists. A relationship was found between the children's caries experience and the number of missing teeth of the mother, her dental attendance pattern and her level of education. None of the social or behavioral variables tested had a strong enough association with caries experience to justify their use as caries predictors in this age group.