Saúde bucal e qualidade de vida de crianças com e sem transtorno do espectro autista e/ou transtorno do déficit de atenção e hiperatividade

Abstract

This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the impact of oral conditions on the oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) of children with and without Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and/or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in Matipó, MG. The study included children aged three to ten years receiving care at the Child and Adolescent Psychosocial Care Center (CAPSi) and the pediatric dental clinic at Vértice University Center – Univértix, who did not present other systemic conditions or disorders. Parents/legal guardians completed a questionnaire on the family’s socioeconomic characteristics and the child’s oral hygiene habits, as well as the Parental-Caregiver Perceptions Questionnaire (P-CPQ), which assesses children’s OHRQoL from the parents’ perspective across four domains: oral symptoms, functional limitations, emotional well-being, and social well-being. Scores range from zero to 188, where higher scores indicate a greater negative impact on OHRQoL. A calibrated researcher conducted a clinical examination of the children, assessing the presence of dental caries (DMFT/dmft index) and malocclusion (Foster and Hamilton index). Descriptive and bivariate analyses were performed using Student’s T-test and the Mann-Whitney U test (p < 0.05). The study included 59 parents/legal guardians and their children, with most of the guardians being mothers (78.0%). The average age of the guardians was 32.8 years (± 7.54), and the average age of the children was 5.3 years (± 1.65). Of the 59 children, 32 were patients from the University Center, and 27 were CAPSi patients, of whom 20 were diagnosed with ASD, six with both ASD and ADHD, and one with ADHD. The clinical examination revealed that all children (100%) had some form of malocclusion and at least one tooth affected by caries, with a mean DMFT = 0.54 (± 1.13) and dmft = 5.9 (± 2.16). According to parents/legal guardians, 27.1% of the children had some limitation in performing tooth brushing. It was observed that children from CAPSi (p<0.001), those on medication (p<0.05), those with limitations in brushing (p=0.014), and those with overbite (p=0.025) had a greater negative impact on OHRQoL. In the P-CPQ domains, children from CAPSi (p=0.008) showed a greater negative impact on OHRQoL in the oral symptom’s domain. Children from CAPSi (p<0.001), those on medication (p=0.009), those with limitations in brushing (p=0.016), those with overbite (p=0.030), and those whose guardians were female (p=0.021) had a greater negative impact on OHRQoL in the functional limitation’s domain. In the emotional well-being domain, children from CAPSi (p<0.001), those on medication (p=0.001), those with overbite (p=0.035), and those with female guardians (p=0.016) had a greater negative impact on OHRQoL. In the social well-being domain, children from CAPSi (p<0.001), those with limitations in brushing (p=0.007), and those with female guardians (p=0.025) showed a greater negative impact on OHRQoL. It was concluded that children with ASD and/or ADHD, children on medication, those with overbite, those with limitations in tooth brushing, and those with female guardians have worse OHRQoL.