Abstract

AIM
The aim of this study was to investigate the oral health status of children aged 6-12 years old living in the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve.
METHODS
The entire population of 6-12-year-olds living in the Reserve was targeted. A cross-sectional study consisting of dental examinations based on World Health Organization (WHO) 1997 criteria was performed in 2011. Dental caries, periodontal (gingival) health, oral hygiene, orthodontic status, and dental fluorosis were assessed at the children?s schools by one examiner.
RESULTS
A total of 595 children were examined. The overall mean DMFT was 2.01 (range 0-13) and 32.9% of children had caries-free permanent teeth. The mean DMFT for 12-year-olds was 2.46. Gingival bleeding was found in 32.8% of the children and oral hygiene worsened with age. Only 8% of 12-year-olds were free of dental plaque. There was a low need for orthodontic treatment (89% of children were Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need grade 1 or 2) and only 2% had any noticeable fluorosis.
CONCLUSIONS
The oral health status of children living in the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve can be classified as quite poor, especially due to the low number of caries-free children and the high prevalence of children with gingival bleeding and poor or fair oral hygiene. Malocclusion and fluorosis do not appear to be public health problems for this population. Considering the poor economic development of the region, with bad access to dental services, special health education programmes are necessary in order to reach the WHO oral health goals for 2020.

Authors

Jipa IT, Amariei CI

Institution

Department of Preventive Dentistry and Orthodontics, Ovidius University, Constanta, Romania. a_ilia_t@yahoo.com

Source

Oral health and dental management 11:1 2012 Mar pg 39-45

MeSH

Chi-Square Distribution
Child
Cross-Sectional Studies
DMF Index
Dental Caries
Female
Fluorosis, Dental
Humans
Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need
Male
Oral Health
Oral Hygiene
Oral Hygiene Index
Periodontal Diseases
Periodontal Index
Prevalence
Quality of Life
Romania
Statistics, Nonparametric

Pub Type(s)

Journal Article

Language

eng

PubMed ID

22488031