Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Nov 13;18(22):11934.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph182211934.

Prevalence of Untreated Early Childhood Caries of 5-Year-Old Children in Hong Kong: A Cross-Sectional Study

Faith Miaomiao Zheng  1 , Iliana Gehui Yan  1 , Duangporn Duangthip  1 , Sherry Shiqian Gao  2 , Edward Chin Man Lo  1 , Chun Hung Chu  1
Affiliations

Prevalence of Untreated Early Childhood Caries of 5-Year-Old Children in Hong Kong: A Cross-Sectional Study

Faith Miaomiao Zheng et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

This cross-sectional survey investigated untreated early childhood caries (ECC) and its associated factors among 5-year-old children in Hong Kong. Children were recruited using a multistage sampling method. One dentist examined the children in kindergarten to diagnose untreated ECC (dt) at the cavitation level. Each child's demographic information, snacking behaviour, and oral health-related practice were collected using a parental questionnaire. The relationships between the untreated ECC and demographic information, snacking behaviours, and oral health--related practice were analysed by zero-inflated negative binomial (ZINB) regression analysis. This survey recruited 404 children. Their dt score was 2.8 ± 3.8. The significant untreated ECC (SiUC) index, which was one-third of the children with the highest dt score, was 7.1 ± 3.6. Their untreated ECC prevalence was 57%, which was associated with the district the child lived in. Most children with untreated ECC (71%, 164/231) had never visited a dentist. Children who brushed without toothpaste had more untreated ECC. Children coming from low-income families and with a lower maternal education level had a higher risk of ECC. In conclusion, untreated ECC was prevalent and unevenly distributed among 5-year-old children in Hong Kong. Its prevalence was associated with toothpaste use, family income, maternal education level and the district they lived in.

Keywords: caries; children; kindergarten; outreach; prevention.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Untreated ECC index (dt) of 5-year-old children in Hong Kong (n = 404).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Distribution of untreated ECC index of 5-year-old children in Hong Kong (n = 404).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Kazeminia M., Abdi A., Shohaimi S., Jalali R., Vaisi-Raygani A., Salari N., Mohammadi M. Dental caries in primary and permanent teeth in children′s worldwide, 1995 to 2019: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Head Face Med. 2020;16:22. doi: 10.1186/s13005-020-00237-z. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry Definition of Early Childhood Caries (ECC) [(accessed on 21 September 2021)]. Available online: https://www.aapd.org/assets/1/7/d_ecc.pdf.
    1. Çolak H., Dülgergil Ç.T., Dalli M., Hamidi M.M. Early childhood caries update: A review of causes, diagnoses, and treatments. J. Nat. Sci. Biol. Med. 2013;4:29. doi: 10.4103/0976-9668.107257. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Tinanoff N., Baez R.J., Guillory C.D., Donly K.J., Feldens C.A., McGrath C., Phantumvanit P., Pitts N.B., Seow W.K., Sharkov N., et al. Early childhood caries epidemiology, aetiology, risk assessment, societal burden, management, education, and policy: Global perspective. Int. J. Paediatr. Dent. 2019;29:238–248. doi: 10.1111/ipd.12484. - DOI - PubMed
    1. James S.L., Abate D., Abate K.H., Abay S.M., Abbafati C., Abbasi N., Abbastabar H., Abd-Allah F., Abdela J., Abdelalim A., et al. Global, regional, and national incidence, prevalence, and years lived with disability for 354 diseases and injuries for 195 countries and territories, 1990–2017: A systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017. Lancet. 2018;392:1789–1858. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(18)32279-7. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types