Access to dental care in Alabama for children with special needs: parents' perspectives.
BACKGROUND
Access to dental care and delivery of quality dental health services are important for children with special needs. The authors surveyed parents of children with special needs in Alabama to determine their perceptions of access and barriers to dental care for their children.


METHODS
The authors sent a questionnaire to 2,057 parents of children aged 3 to 13 years with special needs--cleft lip and/or palate; cerebral palsy, or CP; spina bifida; or epilepsy/seizure disorders--who were listed in a database provided by Children Rehabilitation Services of Alabama. The authors conducted univariate and multivariate analyses to calculate odds ratios and 95 percent confidence intervals.


RESULTS
The overall response rate was 38 percent (N = 714). Eighty-five percent of respondents reported that their children had received some form of routine dental care. However, 35 percent of respondents reported they had had problems finding dentists willing to treat their children. Among those with problems, significant barriers to dental care included their children's having Medicaid insurance, poor oral health or CP, as well as a shortage of dentists with training in the care of children with special needs.


CONCLUSIONS
While the majority of respondents said their children had access to dental care, one-third said their children had problems receiving this care. Many of these problems can be ameliorated. Increasing providers' participation in the Medicaid program and improving their knowledge about, empathy for and training in the care of children with special needs is essential in improving access to dental care for this population.
Al Agili
Dania E
DE
University of Alabama at Birmingham, 35294-0022, USA. dania@uab.edu
Roseman
Jeffrey
J
Pass
Mary Ann
MA
Thornton
John B
JB
Chavers
L Scott
LS
D000293:Adolescent; D000407:Alabama; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002547:Cerebral Palsy; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002971:Cleft Lip; D002972:Cleft Palate; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D019140:Dental Care for Children; D017742:Dental Care for Chronically Ill; D003730:Dental Care for Persons with Disabilities; D004827:Epilepsy; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D008484:Medicaid; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D016017:Odds Ratio; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D016079:Refusal to Treat; D016135:Spinal Dysraphism; D014481:United States