Immigrant Status and Ethnic Inequities in Dental Caries in Children: Bilbao, Spain

Elena Rodriguez-Alvarez, Luisa N. Borrell, Elena Marañon and Nerea Lanborena
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Elena Rodriguez-Alvarez: Department of Nursing I, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), 48940 Leioa, Bizkaia, Spain
Luisa N. Borrell: OPIK-Research Group for Social Determinants of Health and Demographic Change, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), 48940 Leioa, Bizkaia, Spain
Elena Marañon: Department of Nursing I, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), 48940 Leioa, Bizkaia, Spain
Nerea Lanborena: Department of Nursing I, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), 48940 Leioa, Bizkaia, Spain

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 8, 1-10

Abstract: This study examined the migratory status/ethnic inequities in dental caries in school children aged 4–9 years ( n = 1388) and the impact of the Children’s Oral Health Program in the Municipality of Bilbao in the Basque Country Region, Spain. Using the 2017 Children’s Oral Health Survey, log binomial regression was used to quantify the association of parental immigration status/ethnicity with tooth decay for (1) the primary and the permanent dentitions, separately, in children 4–9 years old; and (2) for the permanent dentition in children aged 7–9 years. Compared with Spanish children, Spanish Roma and immigrant children had a higher probability of tooth decay in primary and permanent teeth after adjustment. Similarly, Spanish Roma and immigrant children had a higher probability of caries experience in primary and permanent teeth. In children aged 7–9 years, Spanish Roma children had a greater probability of tooth decay and caries experience ( DMFT index ≥ 1; PR: 6.20; 95% CI: 3.18, 12.12; and PR: 4.52; 95% CI: 2.46, 8.32; respectively) compared with Spanish Children. These associations were not observed in immigrant children. This study shows that parental immigration status and/or ethnicity affect caries outcomes in immigrant and Roma children in both primary and permanent dentition.

Keywords: dental caries; children; immigration; ethnicity; inequities; survey (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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