Changes in Dental Health and Dental Health Habits from 3 to 5 Years of Age

• Published in: Journal of public health dentistry 1998, Vol.58 (4), p.270-274
• Main Authors: Mattila, Marja-Leena, Paunio, Päivi, Rautava, Päivi, Ojanlatva, Ansa, Sillanpää, Matti
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Child, Preschool; children's dental health; Dental Caries - pathology; Dental Caries - prevention & control; Dental Caries Susceptibility; Dental Enamel - pathology; Dental Plaque Index; Dentin - pathology; Dentistry; Dietary Sucrose - administration & dosage; DMF Index; Educational Status; Feeding Behavior; Female; Finland; Follow-Up Studies; health education; Health Education, Dental; Health Status; Humans; Male; Mothers - education; Oral Health; Oral Hygiene; preventive dental care; quality of preventive dental care; Risk Factors; Toothbrushing
• ISSN: 0022-4006; 1752-7325
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1752-7325.1998.tb03008.x

Objectives: This study sought to determine how dental health and dental health habits change from 3 to 5 years of age and to consider whether preventive dental health care helped in preventing or halting caries in children. Methods: The study included 67 maternity health care clinics, 72 well‐baby clinics, and 69 dental health care clinics. Of the 1,292 newborn children, 1,003 (90.8%) were included in this study. Results: Preventive dental health care contributed to dental caries being halted in only 13.2 percent of those children who had enamel caries at 3 years of age. The dmft index did not increase in 22.6 percent of those children who had dentinal caries at 3 years of age. For all others, the disease became more severe. Toothbrushing habits of 3‐year‐old children were very consistent over the two years studied. Children were at a risk for caries when their mothers had nine years of basic education, when they already had plaque and caries at 3 years of age, and when the frequency of eating sweets increased the most during the two‐year study period. Conclusion: Among 3‐year‐old children, plaque is an indicator of caries risk and therefore should be a key element in health education. Those children who already have evidence of caries at 3 years of age should be the target of preventive dental services because of their increased risk.