Treatment outcomes and costs of dental sealants among children enrolled in Medicaid

J.A. Weintraub, S.C. Stearns, R.G. Rozier and C.-C. Huang

American Journal of Public Health, 2001, vol. 91, issue 11, 1877-1881

Abstract: Objectives. This retrospective cohort analysis of children enrolled in the North Carolina Medicaid program compared the likelihood of restorative treatments and associated cumulative Medicaid expenditures for teeth with or without dental sealants, Methods. We assessed the dental experience of the cohort of 15438 children from 1985 to 1992 on the basis of enrollment and claims files. We conducted regression analyses for outcomes (cariesrelated services involving the occlusal surface [CRSOs] of permanent first molars) and cumulative expenditures, controlling for characteristics of the child, the treating dentist, and the child's county of residence. Results. Overall, 23% of children received at least 1 sealant and 33% at least 1 CRSO. Sealants were effective in preventing CRSOs, although the degree of effectiveness was highest for children with the greater levels of CRSOs before sealant placement. Estimated cumulative Medicaid expenditures indicated expenditure savings from sealants within 2 years of application for children with 2 or more prior CRSOs. Conclusions. Sealant placement was associated with expenditure savings to Medicaid for certain highrisk children, so Medicaid and, more broadly, society will benefit by providing for sealant placement in these children.

Date: 2001
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

There are no downloads for this item, see the EconPapers FAQ for hints about obtaining it.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:aph:ajpbhl:2001:91:11:1877-1881_6

Access Statistics for this article

American Journal of Public Health is currently edited by Alfredo Morabia

More articles in American Journal of Public Health from American Public Health Association
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Christopher F Baum ().