title: Influences on preschool children's oral health-related quality of life as reported by English and Spanish-speaking parents and caregivers.
abstract: This study examined young, preschool children's oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) among a community-based cohort of English and Spanish-speaking parent-child dyads in North Carolina, and sought to quantify the association of parent/caregiver characteristics, including spoken language, with OHRQoL impacts.
  
  
  
  Data from structured interviews with 1,111 parents of children aged 6-23 months enrolled in the Zero-Out Early Childhood Caries study in 2010-2012 were used. OHRQoL was measured using the overall score (range: 0-52) of the Early Childhood Oral Health Impact Scale (ECOHIS). We examined associations with parents' sociodemographic characteristics, spoken language, self-reported oral and general health, oral health knowledge, children's dental attendance, and dental care needs. Analyses included descriptive, bivariate, and multivariate methods based upon zero-inflated negative binomial regression. To determine differences between English and Spanish speakers, language-stratified model estimates were contrasted using homogeneity χ2tests.
  
  
  
  The mean overall ECOHIS score was 3.9 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 3.6-4.2]; 4.7 among English-speakers and 1.5 among Spanish speakers. In multivariate analyses, caregivers' education showed a positive association with OHRQoL impacts among Spanish speakers [prevalence ratio (PR) = 1.12 (95% CI = 1.03-1.22), for every added year of schooling], whereas caregivers' fair/poor oral health showed a positive association among English speakers (PR = 1.20; 95% CI = 1.02-1.41).
  
  
  
  The overall severity of ECOHIS impacts was low among this population-based sample of young, preschool children, and substantially lower among Spanish versus English speakers. Further studies are warranted to identify sources of these differences in - actual or reported - OHRQoL impacts.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthodontics, School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
authors.forename: Catherine D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Born
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Dentistry, School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.|Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
authors.forename: Kimon
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Divaris
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Craniofacial Health Sciences, School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
authors.forename: Leslie P
authors.initials: LP
authors.lastname: Zeldin
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Policy and Management, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
authors.forename: R Gary
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Rozier
mesh_terms: D017028:Caregivers; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D007802:Language; D008297:Male; D009657:North Carolina; D009909:Oral Health; D010290:Parents; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors
keywords: caregivers; children; early childhood; cohort studies; quality of life