Disadvantaged Children Have High Rates of Untreated Caries
Disadvantaged Children Have High Rates of Untreated CariesA study conducted at the Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, reports that 73% of indigent children in Los Angeles County have active caries that
Disadvantaged Children Have High Rates of Untreated Caries
A study conducted at the Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, reports that 73% of indigent children in Los Angeles County have active caries that is not being treated. The study involved more than 2,300 kids who were screened at 59 different Head Start centers; Women, Infants and Children centers, and schools across Los Angeles County.
Study authors Roseann Mulligan, DDS, chair of the Division of Dental Public Health and Pediatric Dentistry, and Hazem Seirawan, DDS, MPH, MS, research assistant professor, Division of Health Promotion, Disease Prevention and Epidemiology, found that the most significant factors contributing to the high rate of decay in this population include access to care (the county’s public insurance program Denti-Cal does not cover many children and only approximately 50% of the area’s dental practices accept Denti-Cal); substandard oral hygiene practices; poor nutrition; and drinking bottled water as opposed to fluoridated tap water.
Suggestions on actions to improve the status of oral health in Los Angeles County’s disadvantaged children were also discussed in the study. Mulligan encourages dental professionals and community members at large to support oral health education in schools and community centers, provide assistance to those organizations that offer oral health care to underprivileged children, encourage dental professionals to practice in economically disadvantaged communities upon graduation, and advocate for changes in government policy that address access to oral health care.
Source: University of Southern California
