Preventing Dental Caries for Hong Kong Kindergarten Children

Abstract

Background: Early childhood caries (ECC) is tooth decay in a child before 6 years old. According to the survey by the Department of Health, 51% of the 5-year-old Hong Kong children suffered from ECC. Objective: The aim of this project is to work with non-governmental organisations to set up an outreach dental service to prevent and control ECC amongst preschool children in Hong Kong.

Method: This project worked with various non-governmental organisations to provided free outreach dental service to selected kindergartens. Dental checkup was offered by a dentist to the kindergarten children with parental consent. A written report of the child’s oral health status was sent to the child’s parents after the examination. Children with ECC also received fluoride therapy with parental consent, or were advised to visit a dentist of their own choice for necessary treatment at cost. Oral health education training workshops were provided to kindergarten teachers. The training workshop was designed to equip the teachers with adequate knowledge and skills to deliver oral health education in kindergarten. Teaching aids such as dental models, posters, booklets, video CD and leaflets were distributed to the kindergartens.

Result: This project served 100 kindergartens from October 2011 to July 2012. A total of 10,956 children participated and on average, each child had 1.8 untreated decayed teeth. The ECC was unevenly distributed, as it affected 40% (4,593) of the children. Teachers from 86 kindergartens had attended the training workshops and more than 1,000 teachers were trained. A pilot ECC prevention workshop was also conducted for parents of the children, and more than 200 parents attended.

Conclusion: The dental outreach service for kindergarten children was set up and implemented as planned. We also have trained and set up an experienced outreach team to serve the community.

Acknowledgement: This study is funded by the S.K. Yee Medical Fund.

This abstract is based on research that was funded entirely or partially by an outside source: S K Yee Medical Fund (Hong Kong)