Caries Prevalence in Children and Adolescents of German-Speaking and Non-German-Speaking Parents, Who Underwent Scheduled Dental General Anesthesia in Innsbruck, Austria. A twelve-year retrospective study

Objectives: Caries polarization is a common problem in industrialized countries. Ethnic minority status, poor educational attainment, and low socioeconomic status have been shown to be inversely associated with oral health care and outcomes worldwide. The aim of this retrospective study in children and adolescents, who underwent scheduled dental general anesthesia (comprising restorative therapy and tooth extractions),was to investigate, if a migratory background impacts childhood caries prevalence in the federal state of Tirol, Austria. Methods: 1,703 consecutive cases of children and adolescents (≤ 16 years), who were (due to dental anxiety or mental and/or physical disablement or disease) unamenable to treatment under local anesthesia, received scheduled dental general anesthesia at the University Hospital of Innsbruck in the years 2003 to 2014. From digital patient files, personal and demographic data (including age, gender, and parents' language affiliation - Germanspeaking/non-German-speaking) were collected. From preoperative orthopantomograms, numbers of previously filled teeth were obtained. Numbers of carious teeth restored and of profoundly carious teeth extracted under dental general anesthesia were recorded. Data analysis was performed by means of descriptive and comparative statistics. Results: Children/adolescents of non-German-speaking parents required significantly more tooth extractions than those of German-speaking parents (4.11 ± 3.20 vs 5.22 ± 3.25), whereas differences in previously filled teeth and in teeth restored under general anesthesia were not significant between the two subgroups. Conclusions: Children/adolescents treated under dental general anesthesia presented high caries prevalence and a severe backlog in oral health. Within the collective, prevalence of profound caries was higher in children/adolescents of non-German-speaking parents. Intensified prophylactic measures (including education in oral hygiene/nutrition and information on the benefit of regular dental consultations) specifically addressing marginalized groups at high caries risk should be implemented in order to increase oral health literacy.