Longitudinal associations between children's dental caries and risk factors.
Dental caries is a common disease in children of all ages. It is desirable to know whether children with primary, mixed, and permanent dentitions share risk factors for cavitated and non-cavitated caries.


OBJECTIVE
To assess the longitudinal associations between caries outcomes and modifiable risk factors.


METHODS
One hundred and fifty-six children in the Iowa Fluoride Study met inclusion criteria of three dental examinations and caries-related risk factor assessments preceding each examination. Surface-specific counts of new non-cavitated caries and cavitated caries at the primary (Exam 1: age 5), mixed (Exam 2: age 9) and permanent (Exam 3: age 13) dentition examinations were outcome variables. Explanatory variables were caries-related factors, including averaged beverage exposure frequencies, tooth brushing frequencies, and composite water fluoride levels collected from 3-5, 6-8, and 11-13 years, dentition category, socioeconomic status, and gender. Generalized linear mixed models (GLMMs) were used to explore the relationships between new non-cavitated or cavitated caries and caries-related variables.


RESULTS
Greater frequency of 100 percent juice exposure was significantly associated with fewer non-cavitated and cavitated caries surfaces. Greater tooth brushing frequency and high socioeconomic status (SES) were significantly associated with fewer new non-cavitated caries. Children had significantly more new cavitated caries surfaces at the mixed dentition examination than at the primary and permanent dentition examinations.


CONCLUSIONS
There were common caries-related factors for more new non-cavitated caries across the three exams, including less frequent 100 percent juice exposure, lower tooth brushing frequency and lower SES. Less frequent 100 percent juice exposures might be associated with higher exposures to several other cariogenic beverages.
Department of Preventive Dentistry, University of Iowa College of Public Health, IA, USA. oititp.c@psu.ac.th
Oitip
O
Chankanka
Joseph E
JE
Cavanaugh
Steven M
SM
Levy
Teresa A
TA
Marshall
John J
JJ
Warren
Barbara
B
Broffitt
Justine L
JL
Kolker
D000293:Adolescent; D001628:Beverages / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D002253:Carbonated Beverages / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D002327:Cariostatic Agents / Q000032:analysis; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004245:DMF Index; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000209:etiology*; D003818:Dentition, Mixed; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005459:Fluorides / Q000032:analysis; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005638:Fruit; D006801:Humans; D007484:Iowa; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008499:Medical Records; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D012923:Social Class; D014070:Tooth / Q000473:pathology; D014094:Tooth, Deciduous / Q000473:pathology; D014099:Toothbrushing / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014881:Water Supply / Q000032:analysis
D002327:Cariostatic Agents; D005459:Fluorides