Abstract
There are many determinants of childrens dental caries. We hypothesized that a mothers untreated caries was associated with increased likelihood of her childrens untreated caries, after controlling for other factors. This population-based study was conducted in a rural, primarily Hispanic, California community. Interview and dental examination data for mother-child (children < 18 yrs old) dyads were analyzed. In a Generalized Estimation Equation (GEE) logit model for mothers (n = 179) and children (n = 387), maternal untreated caries was a statistically significant correlate of childs untreated caries, odds ratio (OR) = 1.76 (95%CI: 1.10, 2.70), adjusted for demographic factors. This relationship did not change when behavioral and dental utilization factors were added to the model, OR = 1.85 (95% CI: 1.12, 3.07). Maternal untreated caries almost doubled the odds of childrens untreated caries and significantly increased childs caries severity by about 3 surfaces. Caries prevention and dental utilization programs for mothers and their children should be increased.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 954-958 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | Journal of dental research |
Volume | 89 |
Issue number | 9 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Sep 2010 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- child
- dental caries
- family health
- mother-child relations
- oral health disparities
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Dentistry(all)