Early childhood caries and associated factors amongst Myanmar migrant preschool children in Thailand: a cross-sectional study.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to describe the prevalence of early childhood caries (ECC) amongst Myanmar migrant preschool children in Thailand and to investigate the factors associated with their caries status.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study included 446 5-year-old children from five government schools in Samut Sakhon Province, recruited using a purposive multistage sampling method. Caregivers completed a structured questionnaire, and clinical examinations were subsequently performed by two independent dentists. Dental caries was diagnosed using World Health Organization criteria. The decayed, missing, and filled primary teeth (dmft) index was used to assess caries experience, with a score of ≥ 1 indicating the presence of ECC. The oral hygiene status was evaluated by the Simplified Debris Index (DI-S). Non-parametric tests were used to perform bivariate analyses, and multiple logistic regression and negative binomial regression were used to identify factors associated with caries status.

RESULTS

The prevalence of ECC was 94.2%, and the mean dmft score was 8.7 ± 5.1, with decayed teeth comprising the largest component (96.6%). Caregiver occupation, caregiver health insurance status, and child oral hygiene status were associated with ECC prevalence, whilst oral hygiene status was also associated with caries severity as reflected by dmft scores.

CONCLUSION

ECC amongst Myanmar migrant preschool children in Thailand is alarmingly high, with most carious lesions remaining untreated. These findings underscore the urgent need for targeted, culturally responsive preventive strategies to reduce oral health inequalities in this vulnerable population.