The relationship of children's dental clinical status with school performance and school attendance in the Kingdom of Bahrain: A life-course approach.

OBJECTIVES: To examine the association between dental clinical status and school performance and school attendance in the Kingdom of Bahrain (KoB) using a life-course framework. METHODS: This time-ordered cross-sectional study included 466 school children in Grade 2 (aged 7-8 years) and their parents in the KoB. Data were collected through parents' self-administered questionnaires, children's face-to-face interviews and dental clinical examinations. Data on children's school performance and school attendance were gathered from parents and school records. Structural equation modelling (SEM) examined the direct and indirect pathways between variables. RESULTS: Children born in families with high socio-economic status (SES) were less likely to have dental caries and more likely to have better school performance at 7-8 years of age. Dentine caries was directly linked with poor school performance. Treated teeth directly predicted high school performance. The presence of dentine caries mediated the relationship of SES with school performance. CONCLUSIONS: Birth and current socio-economic factors were significant predictors of dental clinical conditions and school performance. Dental caries and fewer treated teeth directly predicted poor school performance.

Are oral health conditions associated with schoolchildren's performance and school attendance in the Kingdom of Bahrain? A life-course perspective.

BACKGROUND: The link between oral diseases and school performance and school attendance remains unclear among Middle Eastern children. AIM: To investigate the relationship of oral conditions with schoolchildren's school performance and attendance using the life-course approach. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 466 schoolchildren aged 7-8 years from Kingdom of Bahrain (KoB) and their parents. Questionnaire data on children's current and at-birth environmental characteristics were completed by their parents. Children's oral health measures, including ICDAS (International Caries Detection and Assessment System), PUFA (pulp, ulcer, fistula, abscess), and DDE (developmental defects of enamel) indices, were the exposure variables. School performance and school attendance data obtained from the school register were the outcome variables. The data were analysed using multivariate ordinal logistic regression. RESULTS: The odds of excellent school performance were significantly lower for children with untreated dentinal caries (OR = 0.98; 95% CI: 0.96-0.99). Children with caries-treated teeth showed greater odds of excellent school performance (OR = 1.41; 95% CI: 1.15-1.74). Disease Control and PreventionNone of the dental conditions were significantly associated with children's school attendance. A permissive parental style was associated with poor school attendance (OR = 2.63; 95% CI: 1.08-6.42). CONCLUSION: Dental caries was associated with poor school performance but not with school attendance. Treated caries was associated with good school performance.