Journal
CADERNOS DE SAUDE PUBLICA
Volume 24, Issue 7, Pages 1509-1516Publisher
CADERNOS SAUDE PUBLICA
DOI: 10.1590/S0102-311X2008000700005
Keywords
health services accessibility; dental care for children; oral health
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The aim of this study was to analyze the use of dental services by children in Sobral, Ceara State, Brazil, relating such use to socioeconomic factors and patterns of service consumption. An analytical cross-sectional study was performed, interviewing parents or guardians of 3,425 children. The relationship between independent variables and use of dental services was analyzed using tests of association (chi-squared), odds ratios (OR) and respective confidence intervals, and multiple logistic regression. 50.9% of children had used dental services at least once in their lives. Of these, 65.3% had used such services in the previous year and 85.4% in public dental services. The importance of the Brazilian Unified National Health System is highlighted by the response in terms of access to dental services, considering that the vast majority of treatment was provided by this public system. The factors that most affected use of dental services were socioeconomic status, health plan coverage, owning a toothbrush, regular garbage collection, maternal knowledge, sewage treatment, and malnutrition.
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