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The oral health of children with Down syndrome in Ireland
Author(s) -
Bradley Conac,
McAlister Triona
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
special care in dentistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.328
H-Index - 41
eISSN - 1754-4505
pISSN - 0275-1879
DOI - 10.1111/j.1754-4505.2004.tb01679.x
Subject(s) - medicine , oral hygiene , special needs , malocclusion , oral health , dentistry , family medicine , oral health care , mainstream , psychiatry , philosophy , theology
The authors investigated the oral health of a convenience sample of 71 children with Down syndrome. The study group had a lower caries prevalence but similar levels of unmet treatment needs as children at special and mainstream schools. Treatment experience varied with age: 5‐year‐olds had more extractions and fewer restorations, and 15‐year olds had fewer extractions and more restorations. The number of teeth with fissure sealants was comparable to that of other children in Special Needs Schools. Although the study group had poor oral hygiene, a need for advanced periodontal treatment was not evident. Few had evidence of dental trauma. Malocclusion was prevalent. Through a government‐funded program, most of the sample had seen a dentist within the previous year, and few parents reported problems accessing dental care. This study suggests that services targeted toward groups with special needs could generate outcomes comparable to those seen in other service users. A finding that also may hold true for other underserved populations.