| Objective:The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of dental caries,periodontitis and dental sealant application among 12-15-year-old children of Shandong Province,China.The prevalence of dental fluorosis in 12-year-old children was also investigated.Moreover,a questionnaire survey was performed to explore the oral health awareness,oral health attitudes,oral health behavior,oral health service utilization and oral health-related life quality of 12-15-year-old children of Shandong Province,China.Risk factors associated with dental caries were then analyzed.Taken together,this study provided epidemiological evidence to develop oral health management strategies.Materials and methods:According to the sampling design of the 4th Chinese National Oral Health Survey,3868 school children,aged 12-15 years,were selected from 12 middle schools in Hedong District(Linyi City),Huancui District(Weihai City),Pingyi County(Linyi City)and Shouguang City(Weifang City).Oral examination and a questionnaire survey were performed to find out the oral health awareness,oral health attitudes,oral health behavior,oral health service utilization and oral health-related life quality of these children.IBM SPSS Statistics 20.0 Software was used for statistical analysis,and the statistical significance level was set as a=0.05.Results:The prevalence of dental caries in permanent teeth among the 3868 children 12-15 years of age was 39.9%,and the mean DMFT was 0.86.The prevalence of dental caries in permanent teeth and the mean DMFT were both higher in the girls than in the boys.However,no significant difference was detected in the prevalence of dental caries in permanent teeth and the mean DMFT among different age groups or residence groups.The prevalence of gingival bleeding in these children was 31.3%,and its calculus existence was 81.7%.Statistical significance was detected in the prevalence of gingival bleeding among different age groups and residence groups,and in the prevalence of calculus existence among different age groups,different residence groups and between the two gender groups.Among the 15-year-old children,the prevalence of pseudo periodontal pockets was 1.3%,but neither deep periodontal pocket(>6mm)nor attachment loss was detected.No statistically significant difference was found in the prevalence of pseudo periodontal pockets between the two gender groups or among the different residence groups.Totally 2.3%of the 12-15-year-old children received pit and fissure sealing,and more city children received dental sealing than the rural ones.In contrast,no significant difference was found out in the prevalence of dental sealing among different age groups and between the two gender groups.Dental fluorosis(DI?2)was not detected among the 12-year-old children.According to the questionnaire survey,33.6%of the investigated children knew the protective effects of fluoride on teeth,and 11.1%of the children were aware if the advantages of fluoride treatment to teeth.Totally 25.7%of the children brushed their teeth twice or more,6.4%used fluoride-containing toothpaste.and 0.3%used dental floss every day.Among these children,51.6%had received dental treatment.Gender,education of mother,only child or not,frequency of sweet food and candy consumption were risk factors closely associated with dental caries among 12-15-year-old children.Conclusions:1.The prevalence of dental caries among 12-15-year-old children in Shandong Province was relatively low but with an ascending trend.The periodontal tissues of these children were in a healthy condition,but the oral hygiene was poor.The prevalence of pit and fissure sealing was low.2.The oral health awareness,oral health attitudes,and oral health behavior of the investigated children should be improved.3.Gender,education of mother,only child or not,frequency of sweet food and candy consumption were closely associated with dental caries among 12-15-year-old children.4.Strategies should be developed to promote the application of pit and fissure sealing and to improve the oral health awareness of 12-15-year-old children in Shandong Province. |
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