Oral Health in Children 0-71 Months from Low-Income Communities, Peru

Objective: determine the prevalence of caries, hygiene habits, diet and the mothers knowledge of oral health.

Methods: A transversal study evaluated 362 children. The WHO`s parameters were used, using natural light, knee-to-knee technique and no-invasive equipment. There were 4 examiners previously calibrated (k>0.85).

Results:The average dmft was 2.97 (S.D. 3.48) for an average age of 36.53 months (S.D. 18.1).The 62.3% of children had certain experience of caries (dmft>1), there were no gender differences (p>0.05). The distribution of caries by age was 10.5%, 27.3%, 60.0%, 65.5%,73.4%, and 86.9% for 0-11, 12-23, 24-35, 36-47, 48-59 and 60-71 months respectively. The average of dental plaque was 2.54 (SD 0.66). The frequency of oral hygiene habits follows: 44.8% of children cleaned their teeth daily, 28.3% cleaned their teeth sometimes, 26.9% never cleaned their teeth and the average was 2.7 times per week (SD 1.5). The 76.7% of children between 0-11 months aged did not perform any type of hygiene. The 80% of all children used the same toothpaste that the rest of the family uses (1500 ppm F). The 96.3% of children received breastfeeding. Exclusive breastfeeding lasted until an average of 6.41 months (SD 3.2). The 90.8% never used pacifier. The 61.9% used a bottle, and the average age when use stopped was 20.4 months (SD 10.4), with a maximum of 48 months. The 59.0% of those who use bottle add sugar and 38.3% adds cocoa or chocolate. The 47.4% of children who use bottle it takes to sleep, and 50% contain sugar. In addition, 10.5% of children have used sugary water (infusions), with the average age of onset of 8 months (SD 5.4).

Conclusion: the prevalence of caries increases with age (p=0.00) as much in posterior as in anterior teeth (p<0.05). The prevalence of caries in anterior and posterior teeth always shows a peak in growth around 24 months of age (p<0.05).