Abstract
Purpose: To investigate the perceptions of parents/caregivers about the impact of oral conditions on the oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) of children/adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) compared to the perceptions of parents/caregivers of children/adolescents without ASD. Methods: A comparative cross-sectional study was conducted involving 80 children/adolescents with ASD three to 16 years of age matched by sex and age with 80 children/adolescents without ASD and their parents/caregivers. Clinical examinations were performed for the diagnosis of dental caries experience (DMFT/dmft), clinical consequences of untreated dental caries (PUFA/pufa), visible plaque (VPI), bleeding on probing (BPI), malocclusion and traumatic dental injury (TDI). Parents/caregivers answered a questionnaire addressing sociodemographic characteristics and the Brazilian version of the Parental-Caregiver Perceptions Questionnaire (P-CPQ), which measures OHRQoL from the perspective of parents/caregivers. Data analysis involved the Wilcoxon test, chi-squared test and Poisson regression. Results: Dental caries experience impacted OHRQoL in the group with ASD regarding the total P-CPQ score (p < 0.001) as well as the “oral symptoms” (p = 0.011) and “wellbeing” (p < 0.011) domains. No differences were found between the perceptions of parents/caregivers of children/adolescents with ASD and perceptions of parents/caregivers of children/adolescents without ASD (p = 0.721). Conclusion: Dental caries experience can have a negative impact on the OHRQoL of children/adolescents with ASD.
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The authors are grateful to the Brazilian fostering agencies Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES [Coordination for the Advancement of Higher Education Personal] Finance Code 001) and Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG [State of Minas Gerais Research Assistance Foundation]).
The authors are grateful to the Brazilian fostering agencies Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES [Coordination for the Advancement of Higher Education Personal] Finance Code 001) and Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG [State of Minas Gerais Research Assistance Foundation]).
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Procopio, S.W., Tavares, M.C., Carrada, C.F. et al. Perceptions of Parents/Caregivers About the Impact of Oral Conditions on the Quality of Life of Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder. J Autism Dev Disord (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-023-06140-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-023-06140-1