Abstract
Purpose
To study Oral Health related Quality of Life (OHRQoL) of pre-school children and its associated factors.
Methods
Cross-sectional study with sample data collected through an on-line questionnaire to a non-probabilistic sample. The questionnaire included the Portuguese version of the Early Childhood Oral Health Impact Scale (ECOHIS) and questions about sociodemographic characteristics, oral health behaviours, and reported oral health of the child. Data analyses included descriptive statistics, Mann–Whitney and Kruskal–Wallis tests and Linear regression (α = 0.05).
Results
The sample consisted of 1475 parents of pre-school children (3–5 years-old), residing in Portugal. The mean ECOHIS total score was 1.5 (sd = 3.4). In the bivariate analysis the child’s age, starting toothbrushing after one year of age, frequent intake of sugary food and drinks, previous appointment with an oral health professional, all reported of oral health problems, and a negative perception of oral health were negatively associated with OHRQoL (p < 0,05). In the regression model the factors that most contributed to a worse quality of life were dental caries and abscess, contributing to an ECOHIS average increase of 2.56 and 3.34, respectively.
Conclusions
The studied population presented a good OHRQoL, with the item related to pain being the most relevant for the ECOHIS score. Worst OHRQoL was found in older children, whose parents negatively rated the children's oral health and with reported dental caries, trauma, and abscess.
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Data availability
Authors declare data transparency and if necessary, availability of data and material.
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MF, SM and SG contributed to the study conception and design. Data collection was performed by MF and SM. Statistical analyses was made by MF, SM and SD. All authors contributed to data interpretation and discussed the results and written, read and approved the final manuscript.
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This study was performed in line with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki. Approval was granted by the Ethics Committee of University of Lisbon, FMDUL.
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Freire, M., Graça, S.R., Dias, S. et al. Oral health-related quality of life in portuguese pre-school children: a cross-sectional study. Eur Arch Paediatr Dent 23, 945–952 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40368-022-00741-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40368-022-00741-7