Community dentistry and oral epidemiology最新文献

{"title":"Do Socioeconomic Inequalities, Residential Setting and Social Networks Predict Different Patterns of Dental Services Utilisation?","authors":"Carlos Augusto da Silva Araújo Júnior, Mario Vianna Vettore, Ana Paula Corrêa de Queiroz Herkrath, Diego Cordeiro, Fernando José Herkrath","doi":"10.1111/cdoe.70047","DOIUrl":"10.1111/cdoe.70047","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>To estimate the probability of dental services utilisation according to demographics, socioeconomic characteristics, and social networks of Brazilians aged 15 years and above.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>The study used data from the 2019 Brazilian National Health Survey, a household-based representative nationwide survey. Individual interviews collected information on time interval since the last dental appointment, residential setting, sex, race/skin colour, years of school completed with approval, family income and social networks. Predicted probabilities and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of time since last dental visit were estimated using a multinomial logistic regression model. Estimates were obtained using the post-estimation commands of Stata MP, version 17.0, considering the complex sampling design and sampling weights.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Prevalence of last dental visit in the last 12 months was 48.4% (47.8%-49.0%). The projected scenarios showed a significant effect of sex, socioeconomic characteristics and social networks on dental services utilisation. The worst scenario was observed for male individuals living in rural areas, with lower schooling, lower income and lower social networks. In this group, the prevalence of dental visit in the previous 12 months was 14.7% (13.1%-16.2%) and 23.1% (19.3%-26.9%) reported never having had a dental visit. Individuals with low social networks exhibited lower dental services utilisation than those with high social networks, across both better and worse socioeconomic status scenarios.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Individuals aged 15 years and above with poor socioeconomic status, living in rural areas, and those with low social networks had lower use of dental services.</p>","PeriodicalId":10580,"journal":{"name":"Community dentistry and oral epidemiology","volume":" ","pages":"354-360"},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145707652","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Comprehensive Dental Treatment and Glycemic Control in Primary Health Care Patients With Type 2 Diabetes: A Retrospective Cohort Study.","authors":"Carlos Oviedo Contreras, Marco Cornejo Ovalle","doi":"10.1111/cdoe.70074","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/cdoe.70074","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and periodontal disease are linked through a bidirectional inflammatory relationship that can impair glycaemic control. This study aimed to evaluate the association between comprehensive dental treatment and glycaemic control in adults with T2DM enrolled in Chile´s Cardiovascular Health Programme (CVHP).</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This retrospective cohort study was based on routine electronic health records from primary care services in La Reina, Chile, between 2021 and 2023. The exposure variable was the completion of comprehensive dental treatment, and the outcome was final glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c), analysed both as a continuous measure and as a binary indicator of glycaemic compensation. Multivariable linear and logistic regression models were fitted, adjusted for baseline HbA1c, age, sex and body mass index (BMI).</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The final analytical cohort included 392 participants (196 treated and 196 untreated). The balanced group sizes resulted from the inclusion of all eligible individuals with complete HbA1c data from each exposure category rather than from sampling or matching. Comprehensive dental treatment was associated with lower mean final HbA1c values (β = -0.94; 95% CI: -1.15 to -0.72; p < 0.001) and was also associated with lower odds of final glycaemic decompensation in the adjusted logistic model (OR = 0.19; 95% CI: 0.10-0.34).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Comprehensive dental treatment was significantly associated with improved glycaemic control among adults with T2DM. These findings reinforce the relevance of integrating oral health care into chronic disease management and align with person-centred, multimorbidity care frameworks. Further prospective research is warranted to confirm causality and inform public health policy.</p>","PeriodicalId":10580,"journal":{"name":"Community dentistry and oral epidemiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2026-05-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147834673","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Decolonising Global Oral Health for Health Equity: A Scoping Review of the Global North Literature.","authors":"Homa Fathi, Habib Benzian, Christophe Bedos, Cristin Kearns","doi":"10.1111/cdoe.70070","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/cdoe.70070","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Dentistry presents itself as neutral and technical, yet its institutions and curricula remain shaped by colonial legacies. Decolonisation is both a concept and a process that seeks to dismantle these legacies and restore legitimacy to marginalised histories, knowledge, and cultures. This review mapped literature on colonial impacts and decolonisation pathways in global oral health, providing a foundation for future dialogue.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A scoping review was conducted. Searches across four databases (Medline, Embase, Scopus, CINAHL) yielded 3263 records, of which 65 articles were eligible. The review included metadata analysis (publication trends, author affiliations, decolonial frameworks) and qualitative thematic analysis in MAXQDA to identify relevant themes.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Most of the 65 studies were published after 2020 and were authored predominantly by women from Global North institutions. While 58 studies critiqued colonialism, only 21 explicitly engaged with decolonisation. Thematic analysis highlighted three domains where colonial dynamics persist in global oral health: (1) marginalised populations and communities, (2) systems of education, research, and workforce, and (3) discursive forces and narratives-including historical erasures, neoliberal framings, and power structures.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Dentistry has been slower than other health fields to engage with decolonisation and existing efforts are fragmented, rhetorical, and prone to co-optation, leaving the field in an early and uneven stage. Preventing the concept from becoming a hollow buzzword requires epistemic plurality, Indigenous and community leadership, and structural reforms in education, research, and practice. The field's future hinges on whether it continues to perpetuate colonial inequities or redefines itself as a justice-oriented force in global health.</p>","PeriodicalId":10580,"journal":{"name":"Community dentistry and oral epidemiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2026-05-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147811857","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Are We Listening or Just Delivering? A Critical Inquiry Into the Implementation Failures of Global Dental Reforms.","authors":"Manu Raj Mathur, Shehnaz Khan Nabi Khan","doi":"10.1111/cdoe.70069","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/cdoe.70069","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Globally, dental reforms have gained momentum through enhanced policy dialogues, the rise of digital health, artificial intelligence and outreach initiatives. Yet the burden of oral disease remains disproportionately high among vulnerable populations, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, even as reforms continue to evolve.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This critical narrative review draws on existing disease burden data, documented reform strategies and an examination of structural gaps in care and prevention delivery. It interprets these through two established frameworks, epistemic humility and implementation realism, to interrogate how reforms are designed. It further proposes epidemiological humility as a new conceptual lens to question how data are interpreted and whose reality remains excluded.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The review identifies four recurring patterns: digital innovations that outpace infrastructure and trust, standalone interventions lacking continuity, prevention strategies deployed without curative care and a growing divide between private provision and deteriorating public systems. These gaps not only hinder impact but distort the visibility of oral disease, shaping policies around what is seen rather than what is suffered.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Oral health must be integrated into primary care and embedded in community-based delivery. Reform requires beginning with inclusion, listening before delivering and building systems that centre people's unmet needs.</p>","PeriodicalId":10580,"journal":{"name":"Community dentistry and oral epidemiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2026-04-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147764940","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"De-Implementing Low-Value Care in Dentistry: The Case for Choosing Wisely Campaigns.","authors":"Fabio Arriola-Pacheco, Rafael Aiello Bomfim, Karen Born, Herenia P Lawrence","doi":"10.1111/cdoe.70071","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/cdoe.70071","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>De-implementation refers to the practice within implementation science that targets reducing low-value care; that is practices that have been proven to be outdated, unnecessary, potentially harmful and in some cases not cost-efficient. Reducing and removing habitual practices, as well as introducing new care, is not easy, as there are multiple provider, patient and system related factors that can hinder these efforts. The Choosing Wisely campaigns have been one of the ways that de-implementation of low-value care has been targeted. Choosing Wisely campaigns consist of recommendations that are implemented through specialty-specific guidance that can be used by providers, patients and the healthcare systems. While Choosing Wisely campaigns have gained widespread traction in medicine, the spread to oral health has been comparatively limited. This commentary explores some of the existing Choosing Wisely campaign recommendations within dentistry and takes a close look at how overprescription, overtreatment, overtesting, and the inclusion and prioritization of care are addressed through these campaigns. Current Choosing Wisely recommendations provide a useful basis that can be utilized to foster a broader movement towards the de-implementation of low-value care in dentistry, thereby facilitating substantive changes in oral health practice, policy, and service delivery.</p>","PeriodicalId":10580,"journal":{"name":"Community dentistry and oral epidemiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2026-04-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147764900","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Examining the Psychometric Properties of the Ultra-Short Version of the Oral Health Impact Profile in Australia.","authors":"Brandan Khor, Gustavo Hermes Soares, Dandara Gabriela Haag, Gloria Mejia, Liana Luzzi, Lisa Jamieson, Pedro Henrique Ribeiro Santiago","doi":"10.1111/cdoe.70072","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/cdoe.70072","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>The Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP) is the most widely used instrument to measure the subjective impact of oral conditions. This study reports the shortening and psychometric evaluation of an ultra-short version (OHIP-7A) from the OHIP-14 in a large national Australian population.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Cross-sectional data included 2734 participants from Australia's National Study of Adult Oral Health (NSAOH) 2017-2018. The sample was divided into training (n = 1367) and test sample (n = 1367). Exploratory statistical procedures (redundancy analysis, Ant Colony Optimisation, dimensionality analysis) used in the establishment of ultra-short versions were employed in the training sample. Confirmatory procedures involving the examination of model fit, criterion validity and reliability were employed in the test sample. The establishment of ultra-short versions from an expert opinion ('Expert-derived OHIP-7') and exploratory ('Exploratory-derived OHIP-7') perspectives were investigated.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Both Expert-derived and Exploratory-derived ultra-short versions displayed a unidimensional structure with good item performance based on network loadings. Both models displayed excellent model fit in terms of Comparative Fit Index (CFI ≥ 0.950) and Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA ≤ 0.050), good criterion validity with variables such as self-rated dental health and good reliability (ω <math> <semantics><mrow><mo>></mo></mrow> <annotation>$$ > $$</annotation></semantics> </math>  0.70). However, based on individual items' ability to capture 'impact' according to item content and distribution of responses across item categories, the Exploratory-derived OHIP-7 (OHIP-7A) was considered superior.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The good psychometric properties of the OHIP-7A in terms of validity and reliability allow aspects of oral health that are meaningful to patients to be captured with a small number of items. This is the first and largest study to comprehensively validate an ultra-short version of the OHIP in an Australian population.</p>","PeriodicalId":10580,"journal":{"name":"Community dentistry and oral epidemiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2026-04-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147728468","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Repeated Use of Emergency Departments for Nontraumatic Dental Conditions: Factors Associated With Being a Superutilizer.","authors":"Morgan Santoro, Lisa J Heaton, Adrianna C Sonnek, Rebecca A Preston, John J O'Malley, Eric P Tranby","doi":"10.1111/cdoe.70060","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/cdoe.70060","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Due to inadequate access to regular, affordable dental care, many patients turn to emergency departments (EDs) for the treatment of nontraumatic dental conditions (NTDCs). NTDC ED visits are a large burden on the U.S. healthcare system, with over 1.3 million visits each year and over $1 billion in associated charges. This study examines the characteristics of ED visitors and superutilizers (4+ ED visits in a calendar year) for non-dental (general) and dental reasons; investigates the cost of care for ED visitors and superutilizers; and estimates associations between patient characteristics and the likelihood of superutilization.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Data obtained from the State Emergency Department Databases was used to summarise trends in visits by general and dental ED visitors and superutilizers, including visit rates and costs, across 14 states and 5 years. Logistic regression models were developed to estimate the likelihood of being dental superutilizers and superutilizers (for dental and non-dental visits) based on the characteristics of their first ED visit (age, gender, race/ethnicity, income quartile, insurance type, presence of comorbidities and state in which ED visit occurred).</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Of the total number of ED visitors (N = 25 905 031), the majority (92.4%) were general (non-dental) visitors; 6.4% were general superutilizers; 1.2% were dental visitors; and less than 1% (n = 2617) were dental superutilizers; dental superutilizers made up 0.2% of all superutilizers. Individuals who sought ED care for dental or non-dental reasons four or more times in a year were more likely to be white, be in the second or third quartile in terms of income, and have insurance coverage through Medicaid, other dental insurance, or to be uninsured. Finally, mean and median treatment costs for general and dental superutilizers were considerably higher than for both general and dental visitors to the ED.</p><p><strong>Discussion: </strong>Individuals seeking ED care for NTDCs four or more times in a year are more likely to be white, have insurance coverage through Medicaid, Medicare or to be uninsured, and have one or more medical comorbidities. Cost of care for superutilizers is also considerably higher than for other ED visitors. Expansion of dental services for adults, particularly those on Medicaid, is needed to ensure they can access timely preventative and restorative services and avoid the burden of dental crisis requiring a visit to the ED.</p>","PeriodicalId":10580,"journal":{"name":"Community dentistry and oral epidemiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2026-04-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147688085","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Oral Health Interventions for People Living With Diabetes From a Public Health Perspective: A Mapping Review.","authors":"Fernando Valentim Bitencourt, Benoit Varenne, Nicole Rendell, Sangeeta Singh, Yuriko Harada, Ole Secher Knudsen, Carolina Martins-Pfeifer, Cristine Miron Stefani, João Botelho","doi":"10.1111/cdoe.70068","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/cdoe.70068","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Despite growing concerns about the oral health-diabetes link, there is a lack of dental health interventions focused on people with diabetes. This mapping review synthesised the current landscape of oral health interventions for people with diabetes and identified future opportunities.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A systematic search of electronic databases (Embase, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library) and grey literature was conducted without language or publication-year restrictions. Eligible evidence was restricted to review-level studies, including systematic reviews (with or without meta-analysis), network meta-analyses, and umbrella reviews, that focused on populations living with diabetes (type 1, type 2, or gestational) and reported at least one WHO core oral health outcome. Paired reviewers screened studies, extracted data, and assessed methodological quality using AMSTAR 2. A thematic map categorised interventions based on WHO-defined core oral health outcomes (periodontitis, dental caries, tooth loss, and oral cancer). Network maps were developed at three levels of action (patient, population, and policymaker), and the findings were stratified by World Bank income classification (2024-2025).</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A total of 3527 records were identified. After screening titles and abstracts and assessing 107 full texts, 76 reviews were included (62 systematic reviews, seven umbrella reviews, six network meta-analyses, and one meta-epidemiological study), with the majority originating from high-income countries (54.5%). Most interventions were conducted in clinical settings (n = 50), followed by community (n = 14) and institutional settings (n = 12). Follow-up periods ranged from two weeks to 20 years. At the patient level, interventions predominantly focused on non-surgical periodontal therapy and scaling and root planing (71 studies, 89.0%), often combined with adjunctive antimicrobial or anti-inflammatory therapies (39 studies, 51.3%), and oral hygiene or lifestyle education (25 studies, 32.9%). Population-level strategies were less frequently reported and included community oral health education, fluoride-based prevention, and primary care integration (26 studies, 34.2%). Policymaker-level evidence was limited (one study, 1.3%), emphasising the integration of periodontal care into diabetes management pathways and interdisciplinary healthcare models. The studies from low- and lower-middle income countries were underrepresented (9 of 44 countries, 20.5%).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Despite growing evidence, gaps persist in population-level and policy-oriented interventions, particularly within primary care and in low- and lower-middle-income country contexts. Future priorities include integrating oral health into diabetes care pathways, strengthening interdisciplinary care models, and expanding preventive strategies in low- and middle-income countries.</p>","PeriodicalId":10580,"journal":{"name":"Community dentistry and oral epidemiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2026-04-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147671246","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Does Oral Health Status Predict Incident Frailty Over the 13-Year Follow-Up in Older Adults in England?","authors":"Egle Petrauskiene, Paola Zaninotto, Anja Heilmann, Anne Peasey, Georgios Tsakos","doi":"10.1111/cdoe.70067","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/cdoe.70067","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>This study aimed to assess longitudinal associations between oral health and incident frailty, assessed by a multidimensional frailty index, in a national sample of older adults in England with participant mortality and drop out considered as competing risks.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A nationally representative sample of adults aged ≥ 50 from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA) was analysed. Oral health was assessed using edentulousness, self-rated oral health and the Oral Impacts on Daily Performances (OIDP) measures. Frailty was evaluated with the Rockwood frailty index. Competing risks regression models assessed the association between oral health at Wave 3 (2006/7) and incident frailty up to Wave 9 (2018/19), sequentially adjusting for demographic characteristics, socioeconomic factors and smoking, and accounting for participants' mortality and dropout.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Of 5760 non-frail respondents at baseline, 1395 (24.2%) became frail during the 13-years follow-up. Edentate males had 1.40 (1.12-1.76) times higher risk of incident frailty than dentate males, whereas the association was not significant among females. Respondents with fair or poor self-rated oral health had 1.48 (1.29-1.70) times and those that reported oral impacts had 1.85 (1.54-2.21) times higher risk of incident frailty than those reporting better oral health and no oral impacts respectively. Oral impacts on functional aspects (i.e., difficulties eating and speaking) were associated with increased incident frailty risk.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Poor oral health can serve as a 'canary in the coal mine' and act as an early marker of frailty development among older adults in England. Future research should investigate whether public health strategies, such as oral health promotion and disease prevention, can help reduce the risk of frailty in later life.</p>","PeriodicalId":10580,"journal":{"name":"Community dentistry and oral epidemiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2026-03-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147590785","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Impact of a Culturally Adapted Intervention on Early Childhood Caries Among Immigrants-A Cluster-Randomised Trial.","authors":"Mariam Reda, Knut Helge M Jensen, Abhijit Sen, Anne N Åstrøm, Manal Mustafa","doi":"10.1111/cdoe.70065","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/cdoe.70065","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Early Childhood Caries (ECC) is reported to be more common among immigrant children than their native counterparts. There are no community-based studies that assess the effectiveness of an intervention in reducing the risk of ECC among immigrant children in Norway. This study aimed to assess the effect of a culturally adapted intervention on ECC, plaque, feeding and oral hygiene habits in immigrant children, as well as on their parents' oral health behaviours.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Seven primary health centres in Bergen, Norway, were randomly assigned to either an intervention or a control group. Immigrant parents of newborns participated in the baseline study (n = 345). Self-reported data were collected via questionnaires at baseline (infants aged 0-6 months) and at follow-up (18-24 months following baseline). The intervention group received a culturally adapted intervention, which consisted of two one-to-one motivational interviews, MI-informed counselling (MI), toothbrushing demonstrations and pamphlets in the participants' native languages at baseline and after 6 months. The control group received only the routine dental information provided at the primary health centres. Clinical oral examinations were performed to assess the presence or absence of ECC and plaque in the children at follow-up. Differences in outcomes were assessed and compared between intervention and control groups using generalised linear mixed models. Odds ratios with corresponding 95% confidence intervals were reported.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A lower prevalence of carious lesions was observed in the intervention group (7.7%) than in the control group (10.6%), while plaque accumulation was higher in the intervention group (19.2%) than in the control group (17.3%). The intervention group exhibited lower odds of night-time feeding, not brushing day and night, or not using fluoride. Conversely, the intervention group showed higher odds of sugar intake in feeding bottles. Parents in the intervention group had higher odds of irregular flossing, mouthwash use and frequent sweet intake. However, none of the findings were statistically significant, indicating no true effect of the intervention.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The present study suggests that the intervention had no impact on ECC, plaque, feeding or oral hygiene habits of the immigrant children or on the parents' dietary and oral hygiene habits. These findings underscore the necessity for community-based, comprehensive interventions with extended follow-up periods to effectively address the needs of this diverse population.</p><p><strong>Trial registration: </strong>ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT05758454.</p>","PeriodicalId":10580,"journal":{"name":"Community dentistry and oral epidemiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2026-03-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147572724","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}