Oral health status and factors influencing oral health outcomes in visually impaired children: a cross-sectional study.

Purpose: To assess the oral health status of visually impaired children and examine influencing factors that may impact oral health outcomes.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional study amongst visually impaired schoolchildren aged 6-18 years enrolled at the Royal Academy for the Blind in Jordan. The WHO Basic Methods was used to collect data on caries and gingival bleeding. Traumatic dental injuries (TDIs) were recorded using the WHO classification modified by Andreasen et al. Parents completed the validated Arabic version of the WHO questionnaire to describe their perception of their child's general and oral health, dental history, oral health behaviours including practices in addition to snacks consumption, and information related to the oral health-related quality of life.

Results: The prevalence of caries was 73.3%, with a mean DMFT/dmft of 3.86, predominated by untreated caries. Caries prevalence was 86.4% (mean dmft 5.18) in children aged 6 to  < 12 years and 65.7% (mean DMFT 2.68) in those aged 12-18. Parents' less favourable perception of their children's dental health correlated with higher DMFT/dmft scores. The prevalence of gingival bleeding was 84%. Children aged 12-18 had significantly higher mean of gingival bleeding than younger children (p < 0.05). The prevalence of traumatic dental injuries was 19.3%. TDIs were more frequent in children with complete visual impairment than in those with partial impairment (p = 0.047). A statistically significant negative association was found between lower maternal education and children's caries experience (p = 0.008).

Conclusion: The prevalence of caries and gingival bleeding was notably high, aligning with studies on non-visually impaired children in Jordan and visually impaired children globally. Children with complete visual impairment have higher dental caries experience and traumatic dental injuries compared to those with partial visual impairment. This suggests that the degree of visual impairment plays a crucial role in oral health outcomes.