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The dental status of four‐year‐old children in the Brunswick Child Development Study
Author(s) -
Calache H.,
Wright F. A. C.
Publication year - 1987
Publication title -
australian dental journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.701
H-Index - 71
eISSN - 1834-7819
pISSN - 0045-0421
DOI - 10.1111/j.1834-7819.1987.tb05378.x
Subject(s) - medicine , socioeconomic status , ethnic group , turkish , oral health , dental health , gingival inflammation , dentistry , gingivitis , environmental health , pediatrics , population , linguistics , philosophy , sociology , anthropology
This dental survey was undertaken as part of the Brunswick Child Development Study to investigate the way in which family functioning affected infant health, growth and development in a poor socioeconomic, multi‐ethnic municipality of Melbourne. Two‐hundred‐and‐sixteen mothers were interviewed and 202 children (aged four years) were examined in 1982. Sixty‐two per cent of the children in the study were caries‐free. This appeared to be associated with the implementation of water fluoridation in Melbourne. Of the remaining 38 per cent, a high‐risk group was identified which appeared related to the ethnic background and educational level of the mothers. Children of Lebanese and/or Turkish mothers appeared to have the poorest oral health status and the highest restorative dental treatment needs. Gingival inflammation was of relatively high prevalence but low severity. It is suggested that the Bleeding Component of the Cowell Gingival Index appears to be a sensitive test for the detection of early inflammatory change of gingival tissues in children.