Child, Family, and Community Influences on Oral Health

University Of California San Francisco, San Francisco CA

Investigators

Linked publications, trials & patents

Abstract

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The purpose of this application is to conceptually and empirically describe risk indicators for children's oral health outcomes using a new large scale national survey of children (ages 2-18) conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and merged with other supplementary databases. Our purpose is consistent with the one described in PAR-04-091; we will be conducting secondary data analysis of parent reported oral health data using an existing database, and studying individual, family and community-level factors that have not been studied together previously using population-based data. The two specific aims of this project are to develop: 1) a conceptual model of the child level, family level and community level influences on children's oral health and 2) a set of empirical analyses designed to describe, via statistical associations, the characteristics of children at the greatest risk of developing oral health problems, thus furthering our understanding of oral health disparities. Accomplishing these specific aims will provide helpful information for dental care practitioners, families, federal and state health policymakers, and dental health services researchers about child, family and community level influences on oral health and oral health disparities. The analyses will also provide new information on the extent to which oral health disparities exist by race/ethnicity and by income. The empirical analyses will use the 2003 National Survey of Children's Health, a new population-based survey of approximately 102,000 children nationwide, including independent samples of approximately 2,000 children in each state and the District of Columbia. Multilevel and survey sampling modeling methods will be used in the empirical analysis.