Caries Experience and Its Relationship with Mother's Educational Level and Occupational Status: A Cross-sectional Survey

AIM: Most studies have investigated established risk factors contributing to dental caries in children, however, with the growing incidence of caries in children more risk factors are being included in literature. Thus, this cross-sectional study was conducted to assess the relationship between mother's educational level and occupational status with the caries experience of the child. MATERIALS AND METHOD: About 120 mother–child pairs participated in the study. Children below 12 years were screened for their dental caries status using DMFT index. The pairs were equally divided into three groups according to the mother's education and occupational status as: Group I–Mothers who did not receive any formal education, Group II–Educated mothers but unemployed, and Group III–Educated employed mothers. Mother's knowledge and attitude regarding the child's oral health was recorded analyzed using Chi-square test with statistical significance set at p < 0.05. RESULTS: In the present study, the lower DMFT score has been significantly related to higher levels of education and occupation of the mother. It was also observed that the knowledge and attitude of the mother related to the child's oral health is directly proportional to the education and occupational status. CONCLUSION: The findings of our study suggest that mother's level of education increases the awareness of the child's oral health. Therefore, it is utmost important to educate a mother to help the child maintain his oral health and reduce the caries prevalence. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: The results of the present study conducted will help the clinician to keep in sight the relationship of mother's education and occupational level and its impact on their child's teeth, which will in turn help them for creating further dental awareness in the society. HOW TO CITE THIS ARTICLE: Nembhwani HV, Varkey I. Caries Experience and Its Relationship with Mother's Educational Level and Occupational Status: A Cross-sectional Survey. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2022;15(S-2):S226–S229.