Disparities in oral health of children in Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Aim: This was to investigate the association between parents' educational level and oral health of Iranian primary school children.

Methods: Data came from the voluntary clinical examination in 2005 of a random sample of 459 third-year primary school children in the 16 schools in Tehran, together with a self-administered questionnaire regarding information on the educational level of the parents. The study used the dmft/DMFT values for dental status, and the CPI, and PI to assess periodontal condition.

Statistics: One-way ANOVA, Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests were used.

Results: The mean dmft value was 4.2 (SD+2.9) in boys and 3.4 (SD+2.6) in girls for the whole study group. The children of the low education parents had more dental caries than those of high education parents in both primary (p<0.01) and in permanent teeth (p<0.05). A strong association was found between high parental education and restorations in primary teeth (p<0.001), but only a trend for restorations in permanent teeth. Mean number of sextants with a CPI score 0 was significantly associated with parents' educational level (p<0.01).

Conclusion: The disparities in the oral health of children need to be considered when developing oral health promotion programmes.