Piecing Together the Puzzle: The Interplay of Malocclusion, Dental Caries, and Oral Health Status in Special Needs Children
Piecing Together the Puzzle: Dental Caries and Oral Health Status in Special Needs Children
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54393/pjhs.v7i10.3935Keywords:
Dental Caries, Malocclusion, Plaque, Children with DisabilitiesAbstract
Children with special needs are at greater risk of oral health challenges due to physical, cognitive, and sensory limitations that hinder oral hygiene practices. Such children face oral health challenges due to functional limitations, leading to dental caries, tooth loss, poor hygiene, and malocclusion. Objectives: To assess the association between types of children's disability with dental caries, oral health status, and malocclusion among children attending Falah Foundation, Lahore. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in children with special needs in which oral examinations were performed. Dental caries was measured by the DMFT index, malocclusion using Angle’s molar classification, oral hygiene using the Plaque Index, and the Gingival Index, while associations were assessed by using the Chi-square test. Results: Most participants were mentally disabled (49.5%) and had higher caries severity among mentally and physically disabled children. Physically disabled children showed the highest abundance of plaque accumulation (38.1%), while severe gingival inflammation was observed in blind (40.0%), followed by physically disabled children (31.0%). Conclusions: Oral health status, dental caries experience, and malocclusion patterns vary significantly by type of disability among Special healthcare need children. Targeted preventive strategies, improved caregiver education, and enhanced access to dental services are fundamental to addressing the oral health disparities in this vulnerable population. Moreover, parental education is also very important to help reduce oral diseases in this group.
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