Timor-Leste struggles with problems of poverty and inequalities that underlie many health disparities, including oral health. This study aimed to determine the association between parental education and dental caries in school children aged 6 to 17 years from 40 randomly selected schools in 4 Dili subdistricts. A questionnaire and oral examination collected data and multivariable log binomial models were used for data analysis. Results indicate no association between parental education level and the prevalence of untreated decay in deciduous teeth (P = .96). There was an association between parental education level and untreated decay in permanent teeth (P = .03) and untreated decay overall (P = .01). Children whose parents had higher education levels have approximately half the relative risk (aRR 0.47, 95% CI 0.25-0.89) of decay compared with children whose parents had low levels of education.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Keywords:	dental caries, parental education, developing economies, oral health care, health management, Timor-Leste
Research Division:	Health Sciences
Research Group:	Public health
Research Field:	Community child health
Objective Division:	Health
Objective Group:	Public health (excl. specific population health)
Objective Field:	Dental health
UTAS Author:	Crocombe, LA (Associate Professor Leonard Crocombe)
UTAS Author:	Allen, P (Dr Penny Allen)
UTAS Author:	Bettiol, S (Dr Silvana Bettiol)
UTAS Author:	Babo Soares, LF (Mr Lucio Babo Soares)
ID Code:	123778
Year Published:	2018
Web of Science® Times Cited:	7
Deposited By:	Medicine
Deposited On:	2018-01-25
Last Modified:	2018-12-10
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