Knowledge, Awareness, and Practice of Pediatricians Regarding Infant Oral Health Care and Early Childhood Caries in the State of Assam, India.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Pediatricians are the first point of contact for evaluating a child's health. Hence, our study was done to evaluate the knowledge, awareness, and practice of pediatricians regarding infant oral health care and early childhood caries (ECC) in the state of Assam. METHODS: A close-ended questionnaire was circulated among the pediatricians of Assam. Data regarding knowledge, awareness, and practice involving the oral health of children and ECC was collected. RESULTS: A total of 110 pediatricians participated in the study and the data obtained was subjected to chi-square analysis. Most of the participants (n=64, 67%) displayed adequate knowledge regarding dental caries and the way to identify them. Although most of the participants knew about practices leading to dental caries, they were lacking in knowledge regarding the deleterious effect of bottle feeding and related habits 65 (50-60%). Also, most of the participants (n=69, 62%) failed to educate the caregivers of the child regarding early dental visits. CONCLUSION: The majority of pediatricians displayed adequate knowledge regarding dental caries and their prevention but failed to educate the parents and caregivers of children regarding the importance of first dental visits and the maintenance of oral health.

Use of Artificial Nipples Among Brazilian Infants and Associated Factors.

Transversal study conducted in a Human Milk Bank to evaluate the factors associated with the use of artificial nipples (pacifier and/or nursing bottle) among Brazilian infants. Analyses were performed using the χ2 test and logistic regression analysis. A total of 6017 nursing mothers were evaluated and the use of artificial nipples was reported by 31.3%. The chance of using artificial nipples was higher among infants whose mothers attended antenatal care in private hospitals [odds ratio (OR): 1.61, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.21-2.14], born in maternities without the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) (OR: 18.38, 95% CI 13.50-25.04) and those with adequate birth weight (OR: 2.83, 95% CI 1.99-4.03). A lower chance of using artificial nipples was observed among infants whose mothers had previous breastfeeding experience (OR: 0.76, 95% CI 0.61-0.95), received guidance on breastfeeding during antenatal care (OR: 0.80, 95% CI 0.65-0.98), practiced exclusive breastfeeding (OR: 0.36, 95% CI 0.28-0.45), breastfeeding on demand (OR: 0.66, 95% CI 0.52-0.85) and residents of inland cities/towns (OR: 0.38, 95% CI 0.20-0.72). The findings highlight the importance of breastfeeding guidance during antenatal care and the role of BFHI in clarifying risks associated with artificial nipple use.

The view of parents and teachers about the occurrence of deleterious oral habits in a group of preschool children / A visão dos pais e professores sobre a ocorrência de hábitos orais deletérios em um grupo de pré-escolares

ABSTRACT Objective: to compare the parents and teachers views about the occurrence of deleterious oral habits in preschool children. Methods: a cross - sectional study with a quantitative analysis. Parents and teachers answered a self-administered questionnaire regarding the deleterious habits of preschool children and signed the Informed Consent Term. At the end, 221questionaries were included. The data were submitted to Chi-square test, Fisher exact and McNemar tests. Results: according to the parents, the most frequent habit was the bottle with 52.04%, followed by the pacifier with 24.09%. According to the teachers, the pacifier was the most frequent one, accounting for 20.36% of cases, followed by the use of bottle (7.69%). In the present sample, 90.95% of the children were breastfed. When related to oral habits, it was observed that the longer the breastfeeding time, the lower the use of pacifiers and bottles. By comparing the questionnaires, it was verified that the parents noticed, more frequently, the oral habits than did the teachers. Conclusion: in the group studied, the parents reported more the presence of deleterious oral habits than did the teachers. It is important that parents, and especially teachers, have information about the harm caused by the prolonged presence of such habits, so that they can encourage their interruption, thus, avoiding possible damages to the stomatognathic system and the performance of orofacial functions.

RESUMO Objetivo: comparar a visão de pais e professores sobre a ocorrência de hábitos orais deletérios em pré-escolares. Métodos: estudo de caráter transversal com análise quantitativa. Pais e professores responderam um questionário autoaplicável referente aos hábitos deletérios de pré-escolares e assinaram o Termo de Consentimento Livre e Esclarecido. Ao final foram incluídos 221questionários. Os dados foram submetidos aos testes Qui-quadrado, exato de Fisher e McNemar. Resultados: segundo os pais, o hábito de maior ocorrência foi a mamadeira com 52,04%, seguido da chupeta com 24,09%. Já segundo os professores, a chupeta foi o de maior ocorrência, representando 20,36% casos, seguido pelo uso da mamadeira 7,69%. Na presente amostra 90,95% das crianças foram amamentadas em seio materno. Ao relacionar com os hábitos orais, observou-se que quanto maior o tempo de aleitamento, menor foi a ocorrência do uso de chupeta e de mamadeira. Comparando os questionários, verificou-se que os pais perceberam com maior frequência os hábitos orais do que os professores. Conclusão: no grupo estudado, os pais referiram, em maior número, a presença de hábitos orais deletérios do que os professores. É importante que pais e, principalmente, os professores tenham informações a respeito dos malefícios ocasionados pela presença prolongada de tais hábitos, a fim de que possam incentivar a interrupção dos mesmos, evitando, assim, possíveis prejuízos ao sistema estomatognático e no desempenho das funções orofaciais.

Oral Hygiene Practices and Bottle Feeding Pattern Among Children with Early Childhood Caries: A Preliminary Study

@#The purpose of this study was to assess the association of bottle feeding and oral hygiene practices with the severity of caries among 3 to 5-year-old children with Early Childhood Caries (ECC). This cross-sectional study was carried out on pediatric dental patients with ECC attending a public university hospital. The parents or guardians were interviewed for the bottle-feeding pattern and oral hygiene practices followed by a clinical dental examination of their children with ECC. Data analysis was done using Chi squared test. Out of 32 children, 69% had severe early childhood caries with mean dft of 8.88. In this study, 87.5% of the subjects had a history of bottle feeding, with 53.1% still being bottle fed at the time of study. Current bottle-feeding habit was found to be statistically significant with the severity of caries (p=0.021). Majority (69 %) of the children were introduced to tooth brushing only after 1 year of age. About 40% of the children consumed either pre-chewed rice and/or shared spoons or feeding utensils with their parents or siblings but there was no significant association with the severity of caries (p=1.00). Because of its association with ECC, prolonged bottle feeding is significantly associated with the severity of caries in our study population. Besides, vertical and horizontal transmission of bacteria was also a risk factor for ECC, but it did not show any significant association with severity of ECC.

Evaluating the effectiveness of oral health education program among mothers with 6-18 months children in prevention of early childhood caries.

BACKGROUND: Mothers play a key role as transmitters of oral health behavior for their children. Hence increasing their knowledge about positive attitude toward desirable oral health behaviors regarding their children will lead to the better oral health of the children. AIM: The aim was to evaluate the effectiveness of oral health education program among mothers with 6-18 months old children in the prevention of early childhood caries. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 480 mothers with 6-18 months old children were selected using cluster randomization of the primary health center. The allocated mothers were assigned into three groups: Motivation group (group A), traditional health education group (group B) and control group (group C). Clinical examination was carried out to record the dental decay of the child. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: The data was analyzed using SPSS 13. Evaluation of statistical significance between groups was made using the Chi-square test, ANOVA and Kruskal-Wallis. RESULTS: Mean number of decayed teeth was 0.23 + 0.58 in group A that was significantly less as compared to 0.39 + 0.79 and 1.17 + 1.32 in group B and C, respectively. CONCLUSION: Motivational intervention was more effective in reducing dental decay in the children as compared to the other two groups.

Adolescent rampant caries.

Adolescent rampant caries is a new and growing challenge in Conservative Dentistry. It has the same etiology and pattern as that of nursing bottle syndrome. Herein, a case is presented in which the main cause of rampant caries is the patient's habit of keeping cariogenic food in her mouth and going to sleep. Educating this etiology and introduction of preventive strategies not only assists in meeting the special oral needs of the adolescent population, but also helps to establish lifelong healthful habits.

Há relação de hábitos orais deletérios com a tipologia facial e a oclusão dentária? / Is there a relation between harmful oral habits and facial typology and dental occlusion?

OBJETIVO: verificar se há predominância de hábitos orais deletérios nos diferentes tipos faciais eaprofundar o estudo da relação entre os hábitos orais deletérios e a oclusão dentária. MÉTODO: foram analisados 307 prontuários de pacientes entre 2 e 59 anos de idade de ambos os sexos, encaminhados ao ambulatório do Instituto CEFAC. Foram anotados dos prontuários os hábitos orais deletérios, oclusão dentária, tipologia facial, sexo e idade. RESULTADOS: observou-se que os hábitos com maior prevalência são: chupeta (125 indivíduos), ranger dentes (115 indivíduos) e mamadeira (102 indivíduos). Dentre as comparações estudadas, as que apresentaram diferença estatisticamente significante foram: a presença do uso da chupeta no grupo de 9 a 12 anos, quando comparado ao de 6 a 9 anos (p=0,0269); presença do hábito de ranger dentes no grupo de 3 a 6 anos quando comparado ao grupo com mais de 20 anos (p=0,0393); presença do hábito de ranger dentes no grupo de oclusão dentária classe I quando comparado ao classe III (p=0,0128) e presença de oclusão dentária classe I no sexo feminino quando comparado ao masculino (p=0,0177). CONCLUSÃO: não há relação entre os hábitos orais deletérios e a tipologia facial. Entretanto, há relação entre o hábito oral deletério de ranger dentes com a oclusão dentária Classe I de Angle.

PURPOSE: to check whether there is a predominance of deleterious oral habits in different facial typesand further study of the relationship between harmful oral habits and dental occlusion. METHOD: we analyzed 307 cases of patients between 2 and 59-year old of both genders, referred to the outpatient clinic of CEFAC Institute. Were we registered medical records of deleterious oral habits, dental occlusion, facial type, gender and age. RESULTS: we observed that the following habits are most prevalent: pacifier (125 subjects), gnashing teeth (115 subjects) and bottle (102 individuals). Among the comparisons, the ones who showed statistical significance was the presence of pacifier use in the group from 9 to 12 years, compared to 6 to 9 years (p=0.0269), presence of habit of gnashing teeth in the group from 3 to 6 years when compared to more than 20 years (p = 0.0393), presence of the habit of gnashing teeth in the group of dental occlusion class I compared to class III (p = 0.0128) and presence dental occlusion class I in females compared to males (p=0.0177). CONCLUSION: there is no relationship between harmful oral habits and facial typology. However, there is a relationship between the harmful oral habit of grinding the teeth with Angle class I dental occlusion.