Toothache in US children.
OBJECTIVE
To describe the prevalence of and risk factors for recent toothache among US children and to estimate frequency of contact between children with toothache and their pediatric primary care providers (PPCP).


METHODS
Cross-sectional analysis of nationally representative data.


METHODS
The 2007 National Survey of Children's Health.


METHODS
Population-based sample of parents/guardians of 86 730 children aged 1 through 17 years from 50 states and the District of Columbia.


METHODS
Parent-reported toothache in the last 6 months.


RESULTS
A total of 10.7% of US children and 14% of children aged 6 to 12 years experienced toothache in the last 6 months. Poor and low-income minority children and those with special needs were significantly more likely to have had a toothache on multivariable analysis. Most children with toothache in the last 6 months had their own physician (88.9%) and had a preventive medical visit in the last year (88.1%), pointing to opportunities for PPCP to identify and intervene with children who have untreated dental decay and toothache.


CONCLUSIONS
Toothache is not the universal experience it was before the advent of modern dentistry. Nevertheless, a substantial number of US children recently had a toothache, with noteworthy variability between states. There are opportunities for PPCP to address oral health prevention, assess for dental decay and toothache, and treat complications. We propose toothache as a potential quality indicator reflecting disparities in oral health for a population.
Department of Pediatrics, Division of General Pediatrics and the Child Health Institute, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98195, USA. cwlewis@u.washington.edu
Charlotte
C
Lewis
James
J
Stout
D000293:Adolescent; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014098:Toothache / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014481:United States