Socioeconomic Disparities in Oral Health Related Quality of Life of Schoolchildren: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract Objective: To analyze whether demographic and socioeconomic factors can influence the OHRQoL in schoolchildren. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional study using a representative sample of 1137 children aged 8-10 years, enrolled in public schools in Florianópolis, Brazil, was conducted. Children answered the Brazilian version of the Child Perceptions Questionnaire (CPQ8-10) quality of life questionnaire and their parents responded to socioeconomic and demographic questions. Logistic regression models were used to analyze the data. Results: Higher probability of presenting a negative impact on the OHRQoL was observed in children whose skin color was non-white (OR 1.46, 95% CI 1.04-1.69) and female (OR 1.33, 95% CI 1.04-1.69). Children in whom the head of the family had years of schooling 9-11 (p=0.001), 5-8 (p=0.005) and ≤4 (p=0.000) were more likely to have a negative impact on the OHRQoL. CPQ8-10 domains evaluation showed that variables education, gender, skin color, and age were associated with a negative impact on OHRQoL (p≤0.05). Conclusion: The educational level of the head of the family and the demographic characteristics of the children are associated with a negative impact on the OHRQoL.

Is there an association between crown discoloration and pulp necrosis in traumatized permanent teeth? A meta-analysis

Abstract The present study aimed to identify the scientific evidence regarding the association between crown discoloration and pulp necrosis in traumatized permanent teeth. A systematic literature search was conducted in the PubMed/Medline, Lilacs/BBO, Scopus, Web of Science, Cochrane Library databases, and grey literature. Quality assessment and bias control were carried out according to the Fowkes and Fulton guidelines. Meta-analysis was performed, and the odds ratio was calculated with a 95% confidence interval. The quality assessment of the evidence was determined for the meta-analysis outcomes using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach. From 2,702 studies identified, five articles met the inclusion criteria. One among these showed no methodological soundness and was excluded from the meta-analysis, and the remaining four studies were included in the meta-analysis. The total number of traumatized permanent teeth evaluated in the meta-analysis was 367. The results showed a positive association between crown discoloration and pulp necrosis in permanent teeth. Teeth with crown discoloration showed 23 times more chance to present pulp necrosis than teeth without crown discoloration (OR 23.82 [1.25, 452.87]; p = 0.03), with a very low certainty of evidence. There is a significant association between crown discoloration and pulp necrosis of traumatized permanent teeth. Due to the very low strength of evidence according to GRADE, this result should be viewed with caution.