title: Fluoride rinsing and dental health inequalities in 11-year-old children: an evaluation of a supervised school-based fluoride rinsing programme in Edinburgh.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Previous studies have shown that fluoride mouthrinsing programmes are effective in reducing caries among children and adolescents. National surveys of child dental health in the UK confirm that there is variation in oral health. In particular, children of low socioeconomic status in Scotland have a disproportionately high share of dental disease. This study aimed to evaluate an existing school-based fluoride mouthrinsing programme on dental caries in populations stratified by socioeconomic status.
  
  
  METHODS
  A random sample of 1333 children surveyed by the National Dental Inspection Programme with average age 11.4 years was included in the study. Caries prevalence data were collected for the 661 rinsers and 672 nonrinsers. Chi-squared tests and t-tests were carried out to test differences in proportion and in mean D(3)MFT, respectively. The data were modelled using multilevel logistic regression, adjusting for age, sex, deprivation and rinse status.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There is a strong negative association between deprivation and prevalence of D(3)MFT = 0. There is no significant difference in prevalence of D(3)MFT between rinsers and nonrinsers, however, mean D(3)MFT is greater for nonrinsers within each deprivation category. After adjusting for age, sex and deprivation, the odds of a tooth being decayed missing or filled for a child who rinsed are 0.79 (0.64, 0.98) compared with those of a child who did not.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Fluoride rinsing can be effectively targeted at children from deprived areas through school-based initiatives. There are some difficulties in recruiting all children from the more deprived backgrounds, but overall reductions in D(3)MFT were observed.
authors.affiliation: Child and Adolecent Health Research Unit, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK. kate.levin@ed.ac.uk
authors.forename: Kate A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Levin
authors.forename: Colwyn M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wight
authors.forename: Carolyn
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Valentine
authors.forename: Gail V A
authors.initials: GV
authors.lastname: Topping
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Naysmith
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D002327:Cariostatic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002648:Child; D004245:DMF Index; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D005459:Fluorides / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009067:Mouthwashes / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015995:Prevalence; D012571:School Dentistry; D012606:Scotland / Q000453:epidemiology; D012737:Sex Factors; D016037:Single-Blind Method; D012923:Social Class; D012969:Sodium Fluoride / Q000627:therapeutic use; D035862:Vulnerable Populations
chemical_list: D002327:Cariostatic Agents; D009067:Mouthwashes; D012969:Sodium Fluoride; D005459:Fluorides