Giles, E. orcid.org/0000-0001-8631-4809, Relins, S., Gray‐Burrows, K. orcid.org/0000-0002-1550-5066 et al. (2 more authors) (2024) Dental caries and school readiness in 5‐year‐olds: a birth cohort data linkage study. Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology, 52 (5). pp. 723-730. ISSN 0301-5661
Abstract
Objective
To describe the association between dental caries and school readiness in 5-year-old children taking part in the Born in Bradford (BiB) birth cohort, UK.
Methods
The Early Years Foundation Stage Profile (EYFSP) assesses the school readiness of young children and is strongly predictive of future academic attainment. Children are recorded as ‘emerging’ (below expected), ‘expected’, or ‘exceeding’ in five key learning areas. The Oral Health Survey of 5-year-olds (OHS5) is undertaken biennially in England, assessing caries experience at a dentine threshold (d3mft). EYFSP and OHS5 were available for a proportion of children participating in BiB. Odds ratios and confidence intervals for caries experience were established, and odds ratios adjusted for significant sociodemographic variables.
Results
EYFSP and OHS5 data were available for 2.5% (n = 346) BiB participants. Nearly half (45.2%) had caries. A measure of socio-economic status, receiving free school meals, was the only demographic variable strongly related to caries experience (OR: 2.8, 95% CI: 1.6–4.9). After adjustment, children ‘emerging’ in EYFSP learning areas had 1.6- to 2.2-fold (95% CI: 1.0–3.8) higher odds of experiencing caries. Children ‘exceeding’ EYFSP learning areas had 2.3- to 4-fold (95% CI: 0.1–0.9) lower odds of caries experience.
Conclusion
This is the first study to explore the association between caries experience and school readiness using a holistic assessment tool. The association was found across different learning areas and was comparable to and independent of socio-economic status. The findings indicate oral health-related absenteeism is not a causative factor. EYFSP shows potential to enhance the targeting of preventive interventions at a child, class or school level.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
---|---|
Authors/Creators: |
|
Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2024 The Authors. Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. |
Keywords: | Early childhood caries; Oral health; Pediatric dentistry; Disparities |
Dates: |
|
Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health (Sheffield) > School of Clinical Dentistry (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 07 May 2024 10:45 |
Last Modified: | 20 Nov 2024 10:05 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Wiley |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1111/cdoe.12968 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:212283 |