Stephanie Jackson|William F. Vann|Jonathan B. Kotch|Bhavna T. Pahel|Jessica Y. Lee
Impact of Poor Oral Health on Children's School Attendance and Performance
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill|University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill|University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill|University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill|University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
objectives examined school days missed routine dental care versus dental pain infection determine relationship childrens oral health status school attendance performance methods used 2008 data north carolina child health assessment monitoring program study sample weighted reflect states population included 2183 schoolchildren variables assessed included school absences performance oral health status parental education health insurance coverage race gender results children poor oral health status nearly 3 times likely odds ratio 389 95 confidence interval 196 775 counterparts miss school result dental pain absences caused pain associated poorer school performance p lt 05 absences routine care mediation analyses revealed oral health status associated performance independent absence pain conclusions children poorer oral health status likely experience dental pain miss school perform poorly school findings suggest improving childrens oral health status may vehicle enhancing educational experience