Impact of oral health conditions on school performance and lost school days by children and adolescents: what are the actual pieces of evidence?

Paula, Janice Simpson de; Mialhe, Fábio Luiz

Abstract

AIM: To investigate evidence of associations between oral health status of children and adolescents and their school performance and lost school days due to dental problems. METHODS: PubMed electronic database was searched for scientific papers published between 1990 and 2013. Twenty-one papers that attempted to investigate the impact of oral health on school performance and lost school days were retrieved. Brief descriptions of each study's methodology and outcomes were presented and discussed. RESULTS: Although the papers reported statistically significant associations between school performance or lost school days and oral health conditions of schoolchildren, all of them were cross-sectional and ecological studies with an observational design, which may not provide full information about causes and effects. In addition, the lack of standardized criteria did not allow comparisons among the studies retrieved in the search. CONCLUSIONS: Oral diseases appear to impact on lost school days and school performance of children and policy-makers should address this issue when planning health promotion interventions in school settings. However, standardized materials and methodologies as well as longitudinal studies using valid and reliable criteria are needed to confirm the causes or risks of oral health factors in school performance, generating hypotheses for future research and providing important data for determining effective actions in school health programs.

school performance; absenteeism; oral health

2. Watt RG. Strategies and approaches in oral disease prevention and health promotion. Bull World Health Organ. 2005; 83: 711-8.
3. Sheiham A. Oral health, general health and quality of life. Bull World Health Organ. 2005; 83: 644-5.
4. Blumenshine SL, Vann WF Jr, Gizlice Z, Lee JY. Children's school performance: impact of general and oral health. J Public Health Dent. 2008; 68: 82-7.
5. Egri M, Gunay O. Association between some educational indicators and dental caries experience of 12-year-old children in developing countries: an ecological approach. Community Dent Health. 2004; 21: 227-9.
6. Petersen PE. The World Oral Health Report 2003: continuous improvement of oral health in the 21st century—the approach of the WHO Global Oral Health Program. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. 2003; 31: 3-23.
7. Taras H, Potts-Datema W. Chronic health conditions and student performance at school. J Sch Health. 2005; 75: 255-66.
8. Moonie S, Sterling DA, Figgs LW, Castro M. The relationship between school absence, academic performance, and asthma status. J Sch Health. 2008; 78: 140-8.
9. Jáuregui I, Mullol J, Dávila I, Ferrer M, Bartra J, del Cuvillo A, et al. Allergic rhinitis and School Performance. J Invest Allergol Clin Immunol. 2009; 19: 32-9.
10. Mikaeloff Y, Caridade G, Billard C, Bouyer J, Tardieu M. School performance in a cohort of children with CNS inûammatory Demyelination. Eur J Paediatric Neurol. 2010; 14: 418-24.
11. Dahlquist G, Kallen B. School performance in children with type 1 diabetes – a population-based register study. Diabetologia. 2007; 50: 957-64.
12. Gift HC, Reisine ST, Larach DC. The Social Impact of Dental Problems and Visits. Am J Public Health. 1992; 82: 1663-8.
13. US General Accounting Offices. Oral Health: dental disease is a chronic problem among low-income populations. Washington, DC: Report to Congressional Requesters; 2000 [access 2012, March 20]. Available from: www.gao.gov/new.items/he00072.pdf
14. Feitosa S, Colares V, Pinkham J. The psychosocial effects of severe caries in 4-year-old children in Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil. Reports Public Health. 2005; 21: 1550-6.
15. Jürgensen N, Petersen PE. Oral health and the impact of socio-behavioural factors in a cross sectional survey of 12-year old school children in Laos. BMC Oral Health. 2009; 9: 29.
16. Milgrom P, Mancl L, King B, Weinstein P, Wells N, Jeffcott E. An explanatory model of the dental care utilization of low income children. Med Care. 1998; 36: 554-6.
17. Astrom AN, Okullo I. Validity and reliability of the Oral Impacts on Daily Performance (OIDP) frequency scale: a cross sectional study of adolescents in Uganda. BMC Oral Health. 2003; 3: 5-13.
18. David J, Åstrøm AN, Wang NJ. Prevalence and correlates of self-reported state of teeth among schoolchildren in Kerala, India. BMC Oral Health. 2006; 6: 10.
19. Freire MCM, Sheiham A, Netuveli G. Relationship between Height and Dental Caries in Adolescents. Caries Res. 2008; 42: 134-40.
20. Gherunpong S, Tsakos G, Sheiham A.A sociodental approach to assessing dental needs of children: concept and models. Int J Paediatr Dent. 2008; 16: 81-8.
21. Petridou E,Atfianassouli T, Panagopoulos H. Revinthi K. Sociodemographic and dietary factors in relation to dental health among Greek adolescents. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. 1996; 24: 307-11.
22. Seirawan H, Faust S, Mulligan R. The impact of oral health on the academic performance of disadvantaged children. Am J Public Health. 2012; 102: 1729-34.
23. Muirhead V, Locker D. School performance indicators as proxy measures for school dental treatment needs: a feasibility study. J Public Health Dent. 2006; 66: 269-72.
24. Muirhead V, Marcenes W. An ecological study of caries experience, school performance and material deprivation in 5-year-old state primary school children. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. 2004; 32: 265-70.
25. Jackson SL, Vann WF Jr, Kotch JB, Pahel BT, Lee JY. Impact of poor oral health on children's school attendance and performance. Am J Public Health. 2011; 101: 1900-6.
26. Jiang H, Petersen PE, Peng B, Tai B, Bian Z. Self-assessed dental health, oral health practices, and general health behaviors in Chinese urban adolescents. Acta Odontol Scand. 2005; 63: 343-53.
27. Petersen PE, Jiang H, Peng B, Tai BJ, Bian Z. Oral and general health behaviours among Chinese urban adolescents. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. 2008; 36: 76-84.
28. Bernabé E, Flores-Mir C, Sheiham A. Prevalence, intensity and extent of Oral Impacts on Daily Performances associated with self-perceived malocclusion in 11-12-year-old children. BMC Oral Health. 2007; 7:6.
29. Bernabé E, Tsakos G, Sheiham A. Intensity and extent of Oral Impacts on Daily Performances by type of self-perceived oral problems. Eur J Oral Sci. 2007; 115: 111-6.
30. Pau A, Khan SS, Babar MG, Croucher R. Dental pain and care-seeking in 11–14-yr-old adolescents in a low-income country. Eur J Oral Sci. 2008; 116: 451-7.
31. Butani Y, Gansky AS, Weintraub JA. Parental perception of oral health status of children in mainstream and special education classrooms. Spec Care Dentist. 2009; 29: 156-62.
32. Gift HC, Reisine ST, Larach DC. The Social Impact of Dental Problems and Visits. Am J Public Health. 1992; 82: 1663-8.
33. Gordis L. Epidemiology. 2.ed. Philadelphia: W.B.Saunders; 2000.
34. Levin KA. Study design III: Cross-sectional studies. Evid Based Dent. 2006; 7: 24-5.
35. Koretz DM. Limitations in the use of achievement tests as measures of educator's productivity. J Human Resource. 2002; 37: 752-77.
36. Florence MD, Asbridge M, Veugelers PJ. Diet quality and academic performance. J Sch Health. 2008; 78: 209-15.
37. Moonie S, Sterling DA, Figgs LW, Castro M. The relationship between school absence, academic performance, and asthma status. J Sch Health. 2008; 78: 140-8.
38. Pourat N, Nicholson G. Unaffordable dental care is linked to frequent school absences. Policy Brief UCLA Cent Health Policy Res. 2009 Nov; (PB2009-10): 1-6. [access 2012, March 13]. Available from: http://healthpolicy.ucla.edu/publications/search/pages/detail.aspx?pubID=92
39. Sheiham A. Oral health, general health and quality of life. Bull World Health Organ. 2005; 83: 644-5.
40. Xavier A, Carvalho FS, Bastos RS, Caldana ML, Bastos JRM. Dental caries-related quality of life and socioeconomic status of preschool children, Bauru, SP Braz J Oral Sci. 2012; 11: 463-8.
41. Moyses SJ. Inequalities in oral health and oral health promotion Braz Oral Res.2012; 26: 86-93.
42. Paula JS, Ambrosano GMB, Mialhe FL. Oral disorders, socioenvironmental factors and subjective perception impact on children's school performance. Oral Health Prev Dent. 2013 [In print]
43. Piovesan C, Antunes JL, Mendes FM, Guedes RS, Ardenghi TM. Influence of children's oral health-related quality of life on school performance and school absenteeism. J Public Health Dent. 2012; 72: 156-63.

Publication Dates

Publication in this collection
28 Oct 2013
Date of issue
Sept 2013

History

Received
31 May 2013
Accepted
11 Sept 2013

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

[1] 2. Watt RG. Strategies and approaches in oral disease prevention and health promotion. Bull World Health Organ. 2005; 83: 711-8.

[2] 3. Sheiham A. Oral health, general health and quality of life. Bull World Health Organ. 2005; 83: 644-5.

[3] 4. Blumenshine SL, Vann WF Jr, Gizlice Z, Lee JY. Children's school performance: impact of general and oral health. J Public Health Dent. 2008; 68: 82-7.

[4] 5. Egri M, Gunay O. Association between some educational indicators and dental caries experience of 12-year-old children in developing countries: an ecological approach. Community Dent Health. 2004; 21: 227-9.

[5] 6. Petersen PE. The World Oral Health Report 2003: continuous improvement of oral health in the 21st century—the approach of the WHO Global Oral Health Program. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. 2003; 31: 3-23.

[6] 7. Taras H, Potts-Datema W. Chronic health conditions and student performance at school. J Sch Health. 2005; 75: 255-66.

[7] 8. Moonie S, Sterling DA, Figgs LW, Castro M. The relationship between school absence, academic performance, and asthma status. J Sch Health. 2008; 78: 140-8.

[8] 9. Jáuregui I, Mullol J, Dávila I, Ferrer M, Bartra J, del Cuvillo A, et al. Allergic rhinitis and School Performance. J Invest Allergol Clin Immunol. 2009; 19: 32-9.

[9] 10. Mikaeloff Y, Caridade G, Billard C, Bouyer J, Tardieu M. School performance in a cohort of children with CNS inûammatory Demyelination. Eur J Paediatric Neurol. 2010; 14: 418-24.

[10] 11. Dahlquist G, Kallen B. School performance in children with type 1 diabetes – a population-based register study. Diabetologia. 2007; 50: 957-64.

[11] 12. Gift HC, Reisine ST, Larach DC. The Social Impact of Dental Problems and Visits. Am J Public Health. 1992; 82: 1663-8.

[12] 13. US General Accounting Offices. Oral Health: dental disease is a chronic problem among low-income populations. Washington, DC: Report to Congressional Requesters; 2000 [access 2012, March 20]. Available from: www.gao.gov/new.items/he00072.pdf

[13] 14. Feitosa S, Colares V, Pinkham J. The psychosocial effects of severe caries in 4-year-old children in Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil. Reports Public Health. 2005; 21: 1550-6.

[14] 15. Jürgensen N, Petersen PE. Oral health and the impact of socio-behavioural factors in a cross sectional survey of 12-year old school children in Laos. BMC Oral Health. 2009; 9: 29.

[15] 16. Milgrom P, Mancl L, King B, Weinstein P, Wells N, Jeffcott E. An explanatory model of the dental care utilization of low income children. Med Care. 1998; 36: 554-6.

[16] 17. Astrom AN, Okullo I. Validity and reliability of the Oral Impacts on Daily Performance (OIDP) frequency scale: a cross sectional study of adolescents in Uganda. BMC Oral Health. 2003; 3: 5-13.

[17] 18. David J, Åstrøm AN, Wang NJ. Prevalence and correlates of self-reported state of teeth among schoolchildren in Kerala, India. BMC Oral Health. 2006; 6: 10.

[18] 19. Freire MCM, Sheiham A, Netuveli G. Relationship between Height and Dental Caries in Adolescents. Caries Res. 2008; 42: 134-40.

[19] 20. Gherunpong S, Tsakos G, Sheiham A.A sociodental approach to assessing dental needs of children: concept and models. Int J Paediatr Dent. 2008; 16: 81-8.

[20] 21. Petridou E,Atfianassouli T, Panagopoulos H. Revinthi K. Sociodemographic and dietary factors in relation to dental health among Greek adolescents. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. 1996; 24: 307-11.

[21] 22. Seirawan H, Faust S, Mulligan R. The impact of oral health on the academic performance of disadvantaged children. Am J Public Health. 2012; 102: 1729-34.

[22] 23. Muirhead V, Locker D. School performance indicators as proxy measures for school dental treatment needs: a feasibility study. J Public Health Dent. 2006; 66: 269-72.

[23] 24. Muirhead V, Marcenes W. An ecological study of caries experience, school performance and material deprivation in 5-year-old state primary school children. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. 2004; 32: 265-70.

[24] 25. Jackson SL, Vann WF Jr, Kotch JB, Pahel BT, Lee JY. Impact of poor oral health on children's school attendance and performance. Am J Public Health. 2011; 101: 1900-6.

[25] 26. Jiang H, Petersen PE, Peng B, Tai B, Bian Z. Self-assessed dental health, oral health practices, and general health behaviors in Chinese urban adolescents. Acta Odontol Scand. 2005; 63: 343-53.

[26] 27. Petersen PE, Jiang H, Peng B, Tai BJ, Bian Z. Oral and general health behaviours among Chinese urban adolescents. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. 2008; 36: 76-84.

[27] 28. Bernabé E, Flores-Mir C, Sheiham A. Prevalence, intensity and extent of Oral Impacts on Daily Performances associated with self-perceived malocclusion in 11-12-year-old children. BMC Oral Health. 2007; 7:6.

[28] 29. Bernabé E, Tsakos G, Sheiham A. Intensity and extent of Oral Impacts on Daily Performances by type of self-perceived oral problems. Eur J Oral Sci. 2007; 115: 111-6.

[29] 30. Pau A, Khan SS, Babar MG, Croucher R. Dental pain and care-seeking in 11–14-yr-old adolescents in a low-income country. Eur J Oral Sci. 2008; 116: 451-7.

[30] 31. Butani Y, Gansky AS, Weintraub JA. Parental perception of oral health status of children in mainstream and special education classrooms. Spec Care Dentist. 2009; 29: 156-62.

[31] 32. Gift HC, Reisine ST, Larach DC. The Social Impact of Dental Problems and Visits. Am J Public Health. 1992; 82: 1663-8.

[32] 33. Gordis L. Epidemiology. 2.ed. Philadelphia: W.B.Saunders; 2000.

[33] 34. Levin KA. Study design III: Cross-sectional studies. Evid Based Dent. 2006; 7: 24-5.

[34] 35. Koretz DM. Limitations in the use of achievement tests as measures of educator's productivity. J Human Resource. 2002; 37: 752-77.

[35] 36. Florence MD, Asbridge M, Veugelers PJ. Diet quality and academic performance. J Sch Health. 2008; 78: 209-15.

[36] 37. Moonie S, Sterling DA, Figgs LW, Castro M. The relationship between school absence, academic performance, and asthma status. J Sch Health. 2008; 78: 140-8.

[37] 38. Pourat N, Nicholson G. Unaffordable dental care is linked to frequent school absences. Policy Brief UCLA Cent Health Policy Res. 2009 Nov; (PB2009-10): 1-6. [access 2012, March 13]. Available from: http://healthpolicy.ucla.edu/publications/search/pages/detail.aspx?pubID=92

[38] 39. Sheiham A. Oral health, general health and quality of life. Bull World Health Organ. 2005; 83: 644-5.

[39] 40. Xavier A, Carvalho FS, Bastos RS, Caldana ML, Bastos JRM. Dental caries-related quality of life and socioeconomic status of preschool children, Bauru, SP Braz J Oral Sci. 2012; 11: 463-8.

[40] 41. Moyses SJ. Inequalities in oral health and oral health promotion Braz Oral Res.2012; 26: 86-93.

[41] 42. Paula JS, Ambrosano GMB, Mialhe FL. Oral disorders, socioenvironmental factors and subjective perception impact on children's school performance. Oral Health Prev Dent. 2013 [In print]

[42] 43. Piovesan C, Antunes JL, Mendes FM, Guedes RS, Ardenghi TM. Influence of children's oral health-related quality of life on school performance and school absenteeism. J Public Health Dent. 2012; 72: 156-63.

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Impact of oral health conditions on school performance and lost school days by children and adolescents: what are the actual pieces of evidence?

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