Purpose: Dental erosion and childhood obesity are associated with a common risk factor, soft drink consumption. The present study aims to assess the prevalence of dental erosion and its association with obesity among children with and without special healthcare needs.
Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 1,200 school children (400 children with special needs (CSHN) and 800 children without special needs) in the age group of 6 to 16 years. Dental erosion was diagnosed according to World Health Organization (WHO) criteria. Body mass index (BMI; weight/height in kg/m2) was recorded for each child. The association of dental erosion and obesity was analysed using multivariate logistic regression analysis.
Results: A total of 331 (27.6%) children presented with dental erosion. Dental erosion prevalence among CSHN was 33.5% and among children without special needs was 24.6%. In the final fully adjusted model, children with obesity presented 2.32 times (95%CI 1.17–4.89, P = 0.001) higher odds ratio (OR) of having dental erosion than normal-weight children. Children who consumed soft drinks ≥ 1 time/day and 2–6 times a week presented with an OR of 2.65 (95%CI 1.23–5.21, P = 0.001) times of dental erosion. Children with chronic vomiting and bulimia presented with a 3.27 (95%CI 1.72–6.12, P = 0.001) times higher OR of dental erosion. Children with gastric reflux presented with a 3.21 (95%CI 1.52 – 5.86, P = 0.001) times higher OR of dental erosion.
Conclusion: The prevalence of dental erosion was slightly higher for special needs children compared to children without special needs. The study outcome suggests that obesity, chronic vomiting, consumption of soft drinks, and gastric reflux are statistically significantly associated with dental erosion.