Prevalence of Dental Caries Among Children and Young Adults with Disabilities Attending a Special Needs School in Sokoto, Nigeria

Objective: To determine the prevalence of dental caries among children and young adults with disabilities attending a special needs school in Sokoto, Nigeria. Methods: This study was a descriptive cross-sectional survey among children and young adults with disabilities attending a special needs school in Sokoto, Nigeria. Data collected were the social demographic and dental caries status of the participants. Data were analysed using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 23.0. The socio-demographic characteristics, as well as the dental caries prevalence of the participants, were determined using descriptive statistics. The results were presented in frequency tables and charts. A p-value less than 0.05 was considered significant. Results: Prevalence of caries was 35.6%. Participants with hearing impairment had the highest caries prevalence (16.5%, n= 39). The highest caries prevalence per age group was amongst the 20 years and above age group (50.0%), followed by the 6-12year old group (46.2%). The Pearson chi-square test result for prevalence per age group was statistically significant (p= 0.029). Analysis by grade (class) showed a higher prevalence in the primary school section (39.3%) than in the secondary school section. Conclusion: The prevalence of dental caries was 35.6%.  It was significantly higher in the hearing and intellectually impaired groups than in their visually and physically impaired counterparts. Also, it was higher among the age group 20 years and above than in other age groups.