Geo-mapping of time trends in childhood caries risk a method for assessment of preventive care
Open Access
- 11 June 2012
- journal article
- Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in BMC Oral Health
- Vol. 12 (1), 9
- https://doi.org/10.1186/1472-6831-12-9
Abstract
Background Dental caries is unevenly distributed within populations with a higher burden in low socio-economy groups. Several attempts have been made to allocate resources to those that need them the most; there is a need for convenient approaches to population-based monitoring of caries risk over time. The aim of this study was to develop the geo-map concept, addressing time trends in caries risk, and demonstrate the novel approach by analyzing epidemiological data from preschool residents in the region of Halland, Sweden. Methods The study population consisted of 9,973 (2006) and 10,927 (2010) children between 3 to 6years of age (~77% of the eligible population) from whom caries data were obtained. Reported dmfs>0 for a child was considered as the primary caries outcome. Each study individual was geo-coded with respect to his/her residence parish (66 parishes in the region). Smoothed caries risk geo-maps, along with corresponding statistical certainty geo-maps, were produced by using the free software Rapid Inquiry Facility and the ESRI ArcGIS system. Parish-level socioeconomic data were available. Results The overall proportion of caries-free (dmfs=0) children improved from 84.0% in 2006 to 88.6% in 2010. The ratio of maximum and minimum (parish-level) smoothed relative risks (SmRRs) increased from 1.76/0.44=4.0 in 2006 to 2.37/0.33=7.2 in 2010, which indicated an increased geographical polarization of early childhood caries in the population. Eight parishes showed evidential, positional changes in caries risk between 2006 and 2010; their corresponding SmRRs and statistical certainty ranks changed markedly. No considerable parallel changes in parish-level socioeconomic characteristics were seen during the same time period. Conclusion Geo-maps based on caries risk can be used to monitor changes in caries risk over time. Thus, geo-mapping offers a convenient tool for evaluating the effectiveness of tailored health promotion and preventive care in child populations.Keywords
This publication has 22 references indexed in Scilit:
- Geo-mapping of caries risk in children and adolescents - a novel approach for allocation of preventive careBMC Oral Health, 2011
- Oral health in children and adolescents with different socio-cultural and socio-economic backgroundsActa Odontologica Scandinavica, 2009
- Global policy for improvement of oral health in the 21st century – implications to oral health research of World Health Assembly 2007, World Health OrganizationCommunity Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology, 2009
- Patient Caries Risk AssessmentPublished by S. Karger AG ,2009
- Social Gradients in Oral and General HealthJournal of Dental Research, 2007
- Dental caries in 5-year-old children attending multi-ethnic schools in Greater Glasgow--the impact of ethnic background and levels of deprivation.2007
- Strategies and approaches in oral disease prevention and health promotion.2005
- Deprivation and oral health: a reviewCommunity Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology, 2000
- Inequalities in oral health: a review of the evidence and recommendations for actionBritish Dental Journal, 1999
- The dental health of 10-year-old children attending multi-racial schools in Greater GlasgowBritish Dental Journal, 1991