Dental care utilization among children in Brazil: an exploratory study based on data from national household surveys

The Trend of Utilization of Dental and Oral Health Services Among Children in Iran During 2019-2021: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background and Aims

Oral health issues present substantial obstacles for children and teenagers globally, affecting their holistic health. With Iranian children experiencing a high prevalence of dental cavities, understanding their utilization of dental services and the influencing factors is essential. Therefore, this study examined the utilization of dental and oral health services by children aged 6 to 14 at healthcare centers in Karaj, Iran, in 2019-2021.

Methods

This descriptive cross-sectional study included 361 children between 6 and 14 years old who visited healthcare centers in Karaj for dental services. The researchers developed a questionnaire to collect data. Data analysis was conducted using SPSS-21 software, Smirnov-Kolmogorov, and Spearman's correlation test.

Results

Analysis of the data indicated that the utilization of dental and oral health services had significant correlations with the place of residence (p < 0.001), the father's education (p < 0.05), the number of children in the family (p < 0.005), and insurance coverage (p < 0.05). However, household income and the mother's education had no significant relationship with the utilization of dental and oral health services for the children in healthcare centers (p > 0.05).

Conclusions

Advocate for policies promoting oral health equity, addressing dental service access disparities, and supporting preventive measures in underserved communities, provision of insurance coverage for dental services can lead to improving the oral health of children.

Time elapsed since peruvian children's last dental care and head of household educational attainment: findings from a national database

BACKGROUND

It has been documented that the parents' highest level of education has an impact on their children's access to oral health services and the frequency of their use.This study aimed to determine the association between time elapsed since peruvian children's last dental care and head of household educational attainment.

METHODS

Cross-sectional study using a database of children aged 0 to 11 years, with a final sample of 8012 participants. The dependent variable in this study was the time elapsed since last dental care and the independent variable was the head of household educational attainment. Other covariates considered were natural region, area of residence, place of residence, altitude, wealth index, health insurance coverage, sex and age. Descriptive, bivariate and multivariate statistical analyses were applied.

RESULTS

Time elapsed since last dental care in the year 2021 was 5.68 years (SD = 5.25). A hierarchical multiple linear regression analysis was performed, analyzing the variables dimensions by separate and joint models. When head of household educational attainment was analyzed, there was no statistical significance (p = 0.262); however, other models did (p < 0.05). Model 4, which addresses all dimensions, was significant (p < 0.001) with an R2% of 0.011 and constant equal to 5.788; it showed significance with place of dental care, health insurance, altitude and age.

CONCLUSIONS

No association was found between head of household educational attainment and time elapsed since last dental care; however, the latter was associated with place of care, health insurance coverage, altitude and age in Peruvian children.

[The use of dental services in the past year in the brazilian population: a systematic review with meta-analysis]

The scope of this study was to analyze the factors associated with the use of dental services in Brazil. The review strategy included PubMed, SciELO, LILACS, BBO, EMBASE, Scopus, WOS and Google Scholar databases, in addition to repositories and databases of dissertations and theses. Studies were selected using the PEO (Population/Exposure/Outcomes) strategy. The outcome of this study was the use of dental services in the last year by the Brazilian population, treated as dichotomous variables for the following analyses: ≤ 1 year and > 1 year. Mantel-Haenszel random effect meta-analysis was performed, estimating Prevalence Ratios (PR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI). A total of 94 studies were selected. The majority (98%) had a cross-sectional design, with 63% derived from primary data. For the meta-analysis, 25 studies were included. The use of oral health services in the last year was associated with higher education (≥ 8 years of schooling) (PR = 0.49, (95%CI: 0.39-0.60)); higher family income (≥ 2 minimum wages) (RP = 0.79, (95%CI: 0.74-0.84)); and living in urban areas (RP = 0.79, (95%CI: 0.64-0.97)). The availability of dental services in the Unified Health System needs to be made readily accessible to people with lower income, less education and those living in rural areas.

Pediatric dentistry procedures performed within the Brazilian National Health System in the state of Rio Grande do Sul before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: difference between the years 2018 and 2021

OBJECTIVE

to analyze the difference in the number of primary teeth dental procedures performed within the Brazilian National Health System (SUS) in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHODS

this was a descriptive ecological study, using secondary data from the SUS Outpatient Information System (SIA-SUS), from 2018 to 2021, in the state and in its seven health macro-regions; we calculated the relative and absolute frequencies and the percentage difference of the dental procedures performed.

RESULTS

94,443 and 36,151 dental procedures were recorded before and during the pandemic, respectively, corresponding to a 61.7% reduction; relevant percentage reductions were found in restorative procedures, which reached 20% in the southern region of the state; an increase in the percentage of exodontic and endodontic procedures was found.

CONCLUSION

the results suggest that the COVID-19 pandemic had negative repercussions on the performance of primary teeth dental procedures in Ro Grande do Sul.

COVID-19 Pandemic impact on Brazil's Public Dental System

The present study aimed to estimate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on dental care procedures in the Public Health System in Brazil. A retrospective, ecological study was carried out, comprising 5,564 Brazilian municipalities. The number of dental procedures (per 100,000 inhabitants) performed in the Brazilian Public Health System (SUS) was the outcome. The impact of the pandemic was estimated by comparing the rate of procedures for each month of 2020 with the rates observed in the equivalent months in 2019, considering the period from March to August. Regulatory legislation regarding restrictions on dental care, issued by the state governments of 27 Brazilian federative units, was used for mediation analysis. A 55% reduction was observed in March for all procedures (IRR = 0.45, 95%CI 0.39-0.51), while in the other months, the rate of reduction remained ≥ 88%. The biggest decrease was observed in collective preventive procedures (reduction ≥99%) between April and August. Procedures that were less likely to generate aerosols (tooth extraction and prosthetic) and emergencies showed the smallest reduction. The reduction was not mediated by the restrictions imposed by state governments (p>0.05). The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was noteworthy in terms of the decrease in the number of dental procedures carried out in the Brazilian Public Dental Service. The lack of access, the delay of elective procedures and the lack of preventive collective procedures could result in an overburdened system, post-Pandemic.

Oral health literacy, sociodemographic, family, and clinical predictors of dental visits among Brazilian early adolescents

BACKGROUND

The prevalence of dental caries is high in adolescents worldwide, and a large percentage have never been to a dentist or have not had regular dental appointments.

AIM

To evaluate the influence of oral health literacy and sociodemographic, clinical, and family factors on dental visits among early adolescents.

DESIGN

A cross-sectional study was conducted with 740 12-year-old students in Campina Grande, Brazil. Students answered about their level of oral health literacy (BREALD-30), levels of family adaptability and cohesion (FACES III), and visits to the dentist sometime in life. Dental caries experience was evaluated using Nyvad criteria. Robust Poisson regression for complex samples was performed.

RESULTS

A higher level of oral health literacy (PR = 1.01; 95% CI: 1.01-1.03), high social class (PR = 1.28; 95% CI: 1.09-1.50), higher mother's schooling (PR = 1.58; 95% CI: 1.37-1.83), family cohesion classified as enmeshed (PR = 1.55; 95% CI: 1.19-2.02) and connected (PR = 1.22; 95% CI: 1.02-1.44), and the absence of toothache (PR = 1.18; 95% CI: 1.01-1.38) remained associated with having visited a dentist.

CONCLUSIONS

Oral health literacy and sociodemographic, family, and clinical factors were predictors of having visited a dentist among early adolescents.

Acesso a bens e serviços de saúde bucal por escolares de 7 a 10 anos em Vitória-ES

Resumo Introdução A utilização dos bens e serviços de saúde é considerada uma expressão positiva de acesso, influenciada por diversos fatores. Objetivo Analisar o acesso aos serviços e bens em saúde bucal, com seus fatores determinantes, entre escolares de 7-10 anos. Material e método Estudo seccional realizado com escolares de amostra probabilística por conglomerado. Os dados foram coletados através de formulário aplicado às crianças e questionário enviado aos pais/responsáveis. O desfecho de interesse foi o acesso aos bens e serviços de saúde odontológicos, a partir das variáveis “primeira consulta odontológica” e “posse de escova dental própria”. As variáveis independentes (características infantis, maternas e socioeconômicas) que apresentaram significância estatística ≤0,10, na análise bivariada, foram incluídas no modelo de Regressão Logística Multivariada. O nível de significância adotado no modelo final foi de 5%. Resultado Associaram à posse de escova dental: idades de 8 (OR=3,303; IC95%= 1,135 – 9,610), 9 (OR=3,452; IC95% = 1,176 - 10,137) e 10 anos (OR= 6,901; IC95% = 1,468 – 32,434); tabagismo materno (OR=4,509; IC95% = 2,021-10,060). Associados à primeira consulta odontológica: idades de 9 (OR=2,321; IC95% = 1,340 – 4,022) e 10 anos (OR= 3,155; IC95% = 1,687 – 5,899); escola privada (OR=3,691; IC95% = 1,343-10,145); dois ou mais quartos na residência (OR: 3,691; IC95% = 1,343 – 10,145) e posse de escova dental própria (OR=2,065; IC95% = 1,009 – 4,226). Conclusão Os resultados apontam para desigualdade no acesso à saúde odontológica. Crianças mais velhas, com mães não fumantes e melhores condições socioeconômicas apresentam maior acesso aos serviços e bens em saúde bucal.

Geographical and socioeconomic inequalities in dental attendance among children in Peru: Findings from the Demographic and Family Health Survey 2017

OBJECTIVE

The aim of the study was to explore the presence of inequalities in the use of dental services among <12-year-old children residing in Peru, according to their wealth quintile and natural region of residence.

METHODS

This was a cross-sectional secondary data analysis of the 2017 Demographic and Family Health Survey of Peru (n = 39 881 children). Generalized Poisson regression models, adjusted for gender, age, maternal ethnicity, place of residence and health coverage, were used to study the association between wealth quintile and use of dental services followed by stratified models by the natural region (Metropolitan Lima, coast, Andes mountains and jungle) and predicted probability graphs to study the effect of the natural region on inequalities in the use of dental services.

RESULTS

Inequalities in the use of dental services among children were observed according to the wealth quintile and natural region. A social gradient was present in the Andes mountains, coast and jungle regions. The greatest inequalities were observed in the coast (richest vs poorest quintile PR = 1.81 95% CI = 1.56-2.11) and jungle regions (richest vs poorest quintile PR = 1.81 95% CI = 1.53-2.14). The jungle presented the lowest proportion of children using dental services, while Metropolitan Lima had the highest proportion. No significant differences were observed between wealth quintiles among children from Metropolitan Lima.

CONCLUSIONS

Differences in socioeconomic inequalities in the use of dental services among natural regions were observed. The distribution of dental centres and personnel, and the geographical and demographic characteristics of each region, may play an important role in the presence of the inequalities observed.

Utilization of dental services and associated factors among preschool children in China

BACKGROUND

This study sought to evaluate dental utilization among 3-,4-, and 5-year-old children in China and to use Andersen's behavioural model to explore influencing factors, thereby providing a reference for future policy making.

METHODS

This study is a cross-sectional study. Data of 40,305 children aged 3-5 years were extracted from the Fourth National Oral Health Survey, which was performed from August 2015 to December 2016. Patient data were collected using a questionnaire, which was answered by the child's parents, and clinical data were collected during a clinical examination. Stratification and survey weighting were incorporated into the complex survey design. Descriptive statistics, bivariate correlations and hierarchical logistic regression results were then analysed to find the factors associated with oral health service utilization.

RESULTS

The oral health service utilization prevalence during the prior 12 months were 9.5% (95%CI: 8.1-11.1%) among 3-year-old children, 12.1% (95%CI: 10.8-13.5%) among 4-year-old children, and 17.5% (95%CI: 15.6-19.4%) among 5-year-old children. "No dental diseases" (71.3%) and "dental disease was not severe" (12.4%) were the principal reasons why children had not attended a dental visit in the past 12 months. The children whose parents had a bachelor's degree or higher (OR: 2.29, 95%CI: 1.97-2.67, p < 0.001), a better oral health attitude ranging from 5 to 8(OR: 1.64, 95%CI: 1.43-1.89, p < 0.001), annual per capital income more than 25,000 CNY (OR: 1.40, 95%CI: 1.18-1.65, p < 0.001),think their child have worse or bad oral health (OR: 3.54, 95%CI: 2.84-4.40, p < 0.001), and children who often have toothaches (OR: 9.72, 95%CI: 7.81-12.09, p < 0.001) were more likely to go to the dentist in the past year.

CONCLUSION

The prevalence of dental service utilization was relatively low among preschool children. It is necessary to strengthen oral health education for parents and children, thereby improving oral health knowledge as well as attitude, and promoting dental utilization.