Does Growth Stunting Correlate with Oral Health in Children?: A Systematic Review

Growth stunting is when children tend to be shorter than their peers through the World Health Organization child growth standard measurement. The condition may affect the development of the brain and other parts of the body, including the oral cavity, which manifests in oral hygiene and overall oral health. This systematic approach literature study aimed to evaluate the correlation between growth stunting and oral health in children. This study was conducted by using a literature review method with a systematic approach by searching for articles related to research topics on PubMed and Google Scholar. The search was adjusted to the inclusion category, which is research that discusses malnutrition and oral health published between 2010 and 2020—research conducted on boys and girls—from birth to 18 years. The exclusion categories used were articles that did not discuss growth stunting and oral health, and grey literature was excluded. The selection of articles was carried out by using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) approach and resulted in 10 selected articles with details as follows: the correlation between growth stunting and oral health in three articles. A high plaque index in growth stunting children was found in two articles, and a decrease in saliva composition in growth stunting children was also found in two articles. Four articles showed a relationship between growth stunting and salivary flow rate. Lastly, one article showed the relationship between growth stunting and the incidence of dental caries. Despite the limitation of the review, the correlation between growth stunting and overall oral health in children can be seen through the oral hygiene index as moderate to low, high plaque index, decreased salivary flow rate, salivary composition, and dental caries in children with growth stunting.